Holiday flight is diverted after mid-air brawl breaks out - News - Evening Standard
       

Holiday flight is diverted after mid-air brawl breaks out

A holiday flight between to Crete had to be diverted after a brawl erupted among drunken passengers, it has been revealed.


An eye-witness told how one man began smashing overhead luggage bins before the captain decided to land the plane in Venice.

Aoife O'Reilly, 18, a student from Dublin, said the men involved were all over 30 years of age and had obviously been drinking.

Futura Gael brawl: A man began smashing overhead compartments

Futura Gael brawl: A man began smashing overhead compartments

She said: 'We were up in the air and two guys - who were surprisingly a lot older than us - started fights.

'Then we had to be redirected to Venice for a couple of hours. The police came on and had to get them off.

'They had a couple of drinks on them, they were extremely aggressive.

'One of the guys half-way through the flight stood up and started smashing the overhead compartments.

'There were loads of girls and a couple of children and I think some people felt a bit threatened.'

The charter flight  from Dublin to Heraklion was carrying 167 passengers.

Dublin-based Futura Gael, which runs charter flights to holiday destinations, apologised to passengers who were delayed by several hours.

'The incident occurred in Italian airspace at approximately 10pm, where a number of passengers were involved in an incident on board,' said a spokesman.

"The captain then made the decision, for the safety of all on board, to divert to Venice, where the aircraft was met by members of the Italian police.

"Five people were removed from the aircraft by Italian police and the remaining passengers continued their flight approximately two hours later and have arrived safely in Heraklion."

The airline said it had launched its own internal investigation.

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