Flight attendants at Heathrow share unruly passenger nightmare – things to avoid on plane
Heathrow: Disruptive passenger deboarded
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In today’s episode, a pilot required police help with a very disgruntled passenger. When the Turkish Airlines Airbus A330 travelling to London Heathrow was approaching the airport, the captain asked for police assistance on arrival.
The Metropolitan Police Aviation Special Force on duty at Heathrow was required for an unruly passenger on board the flight.
Six police officers made their way to the gate and waited in the airbridge for the aircraft to arrive at the stand and arrest the disruptive passenger.
One of the officers explained the captain had requested police assistance over the radio but they couldn’t have any more information until the crew opened the aircraft door.
The officer explained: “It’s an unruly passenger, the captain has asked for police assistance.”
He was a category three disruptive passenger, which is the highest level.
Category three means they have demonstrated physical violence or threatening behaviour to the other passengers or cabin crew.
“We don’t know how violent he has been,” the police explained.
After opening the aircraft door on arrival, the cabin chief said: “His seat is 34 but now he’s not sitting on his seat.”
The police officers asked the crew if someone could guide them to him.
The flight attendants explained the passenger “had been disturbing other passengers sitting next to him after meal service” and he “didn’t stop talking or shouting” during the whole flight.
The police proceeded to find the passenger on board, and took him outside “to have a chat”.
The unruly passenger was later arrested.
Getting the disrupting passenger out of the plane fast was crucial for the airline as this flight only had a turnout time of 16 minutes due to a previous delay.
This means the crew had just 16 minutes to disembark the passengers, clean the aircraft and complete the new boarding.
Airlines try to avoid delays at all costs as they could cost them £200 a minute in compensation fees.
The number of disruptive passengers on UK flights has doubled since 2020, but what is an unruly passenger and what are the reasons why crew members would call the police and offload you from the plane?
The Civil Aviation Authority explained that “disruptive passenger behaviour is one of the main reasons for aircraft diversions”.
According to the aviation authority, passengers can be offloaded from the plane and arrested if the crew considers what they have done or said is “unacceptable behaviour”.
Examples of unruly behaviour on board the plane:
Drug/alcohol intoxication
Refusal to allow security checks
Disobeying safety or security instructions
Threatening, abusive or insulting words
Endangering the safety of aircraft or other person
Acting in a disruptive manner
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