Pilot 'punched by passenger' in horror mass brawl on Wizz Air flight to Greece
12 May 2022, 14:19 | Updated: 12 May 2022, 14:31
This is the shocking moment a mass brawl erupted on a Wizz Air flight to Greece, with a British man allegedly punching the pilot.
The British passenger was arrested by police after causing carnage on the plane, which flew to Crete on Tuesday evening, holidaymakers said.
The fight broke out shortly after the flight touched down in Greece, with the British man allegedly throwing punches at other travellers and the pilot, The Sun reports.
Tourists said the pair were smoking and vaping throughout the journey, threatening fellow travellers, and were drunk before they even got on the plane.
The passenger's anger boiled over when he was told he would be escorted to the airport by police, witnesses said.
The "disgraceful" commotion caused the pilot to come out of his cockpit to try and calm down the angry passenger.
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Witnesses claim he was punched by the passenger, who is reportedly from Bermondsey, south London - with screams heard from horrified onlookers.
The passenger and his friend, both in their 30s, were joined by a third man with a litre of vodka on the 6pm flight from Gatwick.
Footage shared on social media shows the brawl unfolding in the aisle of the plane, with eyewitnesses claiming the pilot was thumped in the scuffle.
The man was dragged off the flight by police with his trousers round his ankles, witnesses said.
Some passengers escaped through the rear exit but then had to wait two hours at security while they gave police statements, meaning many missed their hotel transfers.
One passenger told The Sun it was "absolute chaos".
The 37-year-old, who was flying to Crete for a holiday with her husband, said the man and his friend were "loud and abusive" throughout the flight.
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“But something clicked when the air stewardess told them they would be taken off the plane by police when we landed.
“It kicked off and he was just swinging punches as a group of guys tried to restrain him.
“The pilot came out and the guy hit him. He seemed okay but was understandably pretty shaken up. It was disgraceful.”
A scheduled return flight to the UK had to be cancelled while blood was cleared up.
A spokesman for Wizz Air said: “On Wizz Air flight W95741 from Gatwick - Chania, a passenger became unruly. The cabin crew handled the situation as they are trained to do and reported the incident to the respective authorities, who arrested the passenger on arrival.
"Wizz Air confirms that crew were asked to go to the airport police station to file the case, by which point the crew had legally reached their duty time limitation, and needed time to rest before the return flight to Gatwick.
"Unfortunately, this meant that flight W95742 from Chania – Gatwick had to be rescheduled. The flight departed at 16:10 local time.
"Wizz Air sincerely apologises for any inconvenience caused, but the safety of passengers and crew is the airline’s number one priority.”
