“I'm No.1 in this town!”: Nightmare Jetstar passenger restrained and arrested
A man has been arrested after allegedly becoming so aggressive on a Jetstar flight from Darwin to Adelaide that fellow passengers had to assist police in restraining him.
Footage filmed by a witness shows the man confronting the police officers who were waiting for him as the plane arrived in Adelaide. As officers try to restrain him, one passenger can be heard yelling “he’s trying to bite”, and officers then used a baton to restrain him. A passenger approaches the officers asking if they “need a hand”, to which they respond by asking him to hold the man’s legs.
Stunned Jetstar passengers had a front-row seat to a dramatic take-down by police on a flight into Adelaide. @ellakduffy #9News pic.twitter.com/GCF6ZqlrNO
— 9News Adelaide (@9NewsAdel) October 11, 2021
Speaking to 9News, one of the passengers, Jamin Tripp, said it was a scary situation, particularly for the children onboard.
"He spoke to a few of the passengers in an aggressive way and said he deserved to be off first, saying 'I'm number one in this town'," Mr Tripp said. "It's not very nice when you've got kids on the plane. A few people were pretty distraught and upset."
In a statement, Jetstar said the man had been temporarily banned from flying with Jetstar and Qantas. The statement said, "A passenger was intoxicated, refusing to follow instructions and was being verbally abusive towards crew and other passengers.”
Following the arrest, the 54-year-old from Mawson Lakes was charged with multiple offences, including two counts of assaulting police. He is due to face court later this month.
Image: William West/AFP via Getty Images