Unruly passenger ‘assaults’ crew member on Goa-Delhi Air India flight

A male passenger was handed over to the security personnel at Delhi airport on Monday (May 29) after he allegedly physically assaulted a crew member onboard an Air India flight from Goa, said the airline. This is one of the many cases of unruly flyer behaviour reported this year.

The latest incident happened onboard AI flight AI882 from Goa to Delhi. An Air India spokesperson said in a statement on Tuesday that the passenger “verbally abused the crew members and then went on to physically assault one of them on board”.

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He reportedly did not stop at that. “On landing at Delhi airport, the passenger continued with the unprovoked, aggressive behaviour and was handed over to the security personnel. We have also reported the incident to the regulator,” the spokesperson added.

Further details about the incident were not immediately available.

Latest in a string of incidents

“Safety of our crew and passengers is of utmost importance to us and we strongly condemn this unruly behaviour of the passenger. We will offer all support to the affected crew members,” the spokesperson said.

Earlier this month, Air India imposed a two-year flying ban on a passenger who caused “physical harm” to two female cabin crew members onboard a Delhi-London flight on April 10.

An unruly air passenger can face flying ban for varying periods under the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) regulations.

Levels of offence

Rules say that unruly passenger behaviour can be classified into three levels. Physical gestures, verbal harassment, and unruly inebriation are classified as Level 1, while physically abusive behaviour like pushing, kicking, or sexual harassment are classified as Level 2.

Life-threatening behaviour, such as damage to aircraft operating systems, physical violence like choking and murderous assault, are considered as Level 3.

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Depending on the level of unruly behaviour, an internal committee set up by the airline concerned can decide on the duration for which an unruly passenger can be banned from flying.

(With agency inputs)