Passenger on Vistara’s Delhi-London flight handed to cops for ‘unruly’ behaviour

Passengers on Vistara’s Delhi-London flight on Monday said their co-passenger, who was reported to local authorities at Heathrow airport, was abusive and a nuisance throughout the flight.

NEW DELHI: A passenger onboard Vistara’s Delhi-London flight on Monday was handed over to local authorities at London’s Heathrow airport on charges that he created a nuisance for passengers and crew throughout the flight, people familiar with the matter said.

A Vistara official said the man was in the custody of local authorities at Heathrow airport. (REUTERS File Photo)

The “unruly behaviour” started soon after Vistara flight UK 17 took off from Delhi’s Terminal 3. When the plane landed at Heathrow, the crew reported the passenger to the ground staff. “The unruly passenger was handed over to the local police and remains in their custody,” a Vistara airline official confirmed on Wednesday afternoon.

A passenger said the man appeared to have lost his temper after he spilled juice, and kept yelling at the cabin crew and calling them names. “He abused other passengers as well,” the person said.

Another passenger recalled how children seated near the abusive man were shifted to alternative seats due to concerns about their safety.

Passengers said they were stuck in the aircraft for a long time after it landed because of the passenger.

An official at the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in New Delhi said the incident was reported to them by the airline. “The passenger is currently with the local police,” he said.