Fight on Ryanair Flight forces plane to divert to Pisa4:55
A Ryanair flight from Belgium to Malta was forced to divert to Pisa, Italy, on November 3, after a fight broke out mid-air. Passenger Tommy Engerer shot this video, which shows two men throwing punches at each other, while crew and passengers try to calm and contain the situation. The Times of Malta, citing Engerer, reported that ?the fight was between two men and their respective female partners.? Later in the video, the pilot can be heard telling the plane that the situation was ?not acceptable at all,? and announcing that the flight would be diverted to Bologna, Italy. It was eventually diverted to Pisa, where police arrested the four people involved in the fight, according to reports citing a Ryanair spokesperson. Credit: YouTube/Tommy Engerer
Shocking moment brawl breaks out on flight to Malta
A HUGE fight that terrified passengers on an international flight forced the jet to land almost 1500 kilometres from its destination.
The brawl, between a number of passengers saw an elderly woman hit in the head while a flight attendant was even slapped, The Sun reported.
The Ryanair flight from Brussels to Malta was forced to land in Pisa, Italy, on Thursday night local time after the chaos unfolded.
Shocked passengers were even forced to get involved, helping to strap the fighters down.
The captain can be heard saying the fight was “not acceptable at all” before announcing the unscheduled landing.
Maltese software engineer Tommy Engerer captured the incident on camera, saying: “It was terrifying.
“The fight went on for so long we thought they might be trying to open the doors and might bring the plane down.”
He recounted the moment the fight broke out, saying the chaos took 10 minutes to control.
Mr Engerer said: “It started when an elderly woman moved seats and told me they’d hit her on the head then a huge fight broke out when two Belgian men tried to intervene.
“They were attacking everyone around them and one of the men even slapped a stewardess in the face.
“It was chaos for about 10 minutes until there was an announcement that the plane was being diverted and passengers managed to restrain them with belts.”
But passengers were even attacked when they tried to guard the doors from the brawling group.
He praised the cabin crew for getting the situation under control.
Mr Engerer said: “They looked out of control as if they were on drink or drugs and the cabin crew did well to bring the situation under control.
“They were eastern European ... but spoke a bit of French as well and were incredibly aggressive.
“We were all glad to see the back of them.”
It is understood the four people involved in the fight were detained by Italian police when the flight landed.
A Ryanair spokesman told The Sun Online: “This flight from Brussels to Malta (3 November) diverted to Pisa after a number of passengers became disruptive in-flight.
“The aircraft landed normally and four passengers were removed and detained by police upon arrival, before the aircraft continued to Malta.
“We will not tolerate unruly or disruptive behaviour at any time and the safety and comfort of our customers, crew and aircraft is our number one priority.
“This is now a matter for local police.”
This article originally appeared in The Sun and was reproduced with permission.
Originally published as Massive brawl forces plane to land