A woman described as ‘the passenger from hell’ went on a rampage on a Jetstar flight to Bali on Monday morning, forcing the pilots of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner to make an unscheduled diversion just an hour and a half into the five hour flight.
Dramatic video has emerged of the woman screaming at a passenger while other passengers stand watching helplessly around her in the airplane’s aisle.
Jetstar flight JQ43 to Denpesar departed Melbourne just before 11 am on Monday and was still flying over South Australia when the pilots performed a U-turn and returned to Tullamarine Airport.
Some reports suggest the woman had started to bang on the cockpit door after accusing one of her fellow passengers of stealing her mobile phone. She then allegedly went on a rampage throughout the aircraft, shouting and screaming at random people and barging passengers out of her way.
In a statement, a spokesperson for Jetstar confirmed that “the Captain decided to return to Melbourne to get assistance from the Australian Federal Police after a passenger became disruptive just under two hours into the flight.”
“We know this was a difficult experience for other customers and our team members, and we thank those who assisted with the situation,” the statement continued. “Due to the circumstances, several crew members were unable to continue flying”.
The airline said that the flight had been rescheduled to 10 am on Tuesday and that impacted passengers would be provided hotel accommodation. They will also be able to claim for ‘reasonable’ expenses.
“The safety of our customers and crew is our priority,” the Jetstar spokesperson noted.
Witnesses described how cabin crew and good samaritan passengers helped to restrain the woman at the back of the aircraft as the plane returned to Melbourne.
Nothing a stiff left hook and a roll of duct tape couldn’t solve, without inconveniencing the rest of the passengers who seemingly can manage to ride in an airplane without causing a fuss.