Drama in mid-air: plane brawl leaves three bruised

The three passengers were smartly dressed when they boarded a Jaipur-bound Indigo flight from Mumbai on December 20. But when they landed, their clothes were ruffled and faces bruised.

The three passengers were smartly dressed when they boarded a Jaipur-bound Indigo flight from Mumbai on December 20. But when they landed, their clothes were ruffled and faces bruised.

HT Image

The drama began when two girls travelling in a group tried to rest their feet on the seat ahead.

The seat was occupied by an Indian returning from Germany. When the lone traveller objected, the girls abused him and slapped him twice.

The groggy-eyed man, jet-lagged after a long flight from Frankfurt, slapped them back. Soon the group travelling with the girls jumped into the brawl.

This is the seventh case of unruly behaviour by passengers on board a flight this year.

“The crew had to drag them back to their seats. It was tough to handle so many of them at the same time,” said an airline official requesting anonymity as he is not authorised to talk to the media.

“This kind of an incident is a safety threat for other passengers,” the crew member added. The scuffle ended after the crew threatened to offload them.

As the plane approached Jaipur, the pilot told the airport authorities about the brawl. Avnish Kumar, circle officer, Sanganer, said that police were called to the airport. After getting off the plane the girls accused the man of misbehaviour and eve-teasing but both parties refused to file a written complaint.

“As soon as we got information about the brawl, the local police was informed. The passengers continued to argue after getting down so they were taken to the Sanganer police station,” said Anuj Agarwal, director with the Airport Authority of India that operates the Jaipur airport. Indigo airline refused to comment on the matter.