Cabin crew on an Emirates flight from Dubai to Islamabad were forced to restrain a reportedly intoxicated passenger who became violent during the flight.
The incident occurred on Sunday, February 24th, on flight EK614, which landed safely in Islamabad at approximately 1:20 am local time.
According to reports, the male passenger became disruptive and aggressive during the two-and-a-half-hour flight. The situation escalated, forcing the cabin crew to intervene to ensure the safety of other passengers and themselves.
Emirates confirmed the incident in a statement, saying, “Emirates can confirm that there was an unruly passenger on flight EK614 traveling from Dubai to Islamabad. The passenger was restrained by cabin crew upon arrival, was handed over to authorities. The safety of our passengers and crew ıs of critical importance and Emirates strives to ensure this is never compromised. Emirates is cooperating with the authorities at this time and cannot comment further.”
Reports suggest,a Drunk and unruly passenger onboard an Emirates Boeing B777-300ER aircraft operating a flight from Dubai (DXB) to Islamabad (ISB) created chaotic situation inflight,which forced the Emirates crew to restrain him & fasten his hands for rest of the flight.#unruly pic.twitter.com/JbKzZ6ZtZc
— FL360aero (@fl360aero) February 25, 2024
Details regarding the nature of the passenger’s behavior or the specific actions taken by the crew remain unavailable. However, reports suggest the passenger may have been physically combative, prompting the crew to take decisive action to control the situation.
This incident highlights one of the challenges faced by cabin crew in maintaining a safe and orderly environment onboard aircraft. Airlines, including Emirates, have strict policies in place to deal with unruly passengers, and these policies can include restraint and even diversion of flights to land at the nearest airport to offload disruptive individuals.