Chinese plane passengers in seat fight
By Yang Jian |
September 5, 2012, Wednesday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A FIGHT between two Chinese passengers forced a plane carrying 200 people from Zurich to Beijing to turn back after more than six hours in the air, Swiss International Airlines said yesterday.
The pair, aged around 30 and 60, began fighting over the simple matter of a seat being lowered too far when the Airbus 340 aircraft was flying over Moscow.
They wrestled each other onto the cabin floor, and when the head steward tried to break them up they started to fight with him, witnesses told reporters later.
The pilot decided to turn the plane around as he feared the fight could break out again even though the two had been separated by passengers and crew members, Mehdi Guenin, a spokesman for the airline, said. He said no one was injured during the altercation.
òThe two passengers were handed over to the police of the canton of Zurich after the plane landed on Sunday evening," Guenin said.
Swiss media later reported that the two men had been arrested and were being questioned.
Guenin said the decision to head back to Zurich rather than making an emergency landing in Moscow was made to avoid administrative difficulties. The airline also said later: "The incident didn't reach the degree of emergency for flying to an alternate airport."
It said the crew had complied with relevant regulations and procedures while handling the incident.
Zurich Cantonal Police spokesman Werner Schaub said that alcohol had clearly played a role in the mid-air fight, Xinhua news agency reported.
Eating a meal
The plane?s 200 passengers were put up in a Zurich hotel before they were put on flights to Beijing with other airlines. Its own flight to the Chinese capital was already fully booked.
All the passengers had arrived in Beijing by around 5am yesterday, after almost a day's delay.
A witness onboard the plane said the older passenger hit the younger man on the head as he had lowered his seat in front too far while the older passenger was eating a meal. The younger passenger fought back, the witness said.
The airline introduced the flight between Beijing and Zurich in February. Most of the passengers were tourists, with China having overtaken Japan in the number of tourists visiting Switzerland.
Chinese civil aviation experts said the pilot had done the right thing by flying back to ensure the safety of other passengers and crew members onboard.
Under Chinese Aviation Law, the pilot has the right to take proper measures to protect passengers when there has been a disturbance in the cabin or when the safety of the flight is under threat.
Li Shurong, a Shanghai lawyer, said that passengers on the plane could sue the two men for any losses that the delay had caused them.
The incident was the third diversion involving Chinese passengers in a week.
Last Wednesday, an Air China flight from Beijing to New York was forced to return to Beijing after a threatening message was received.
And the following day, a Shenzhen Airlines flight was diverted to an airport in central China after receiving a threatening call. A man who admitted making the fake call has been arrested.
The pair, aged around 30 and 60, began fighting over the simple matter of a seat being lowered too far when the Airbus 340 aircraft was flying over Moscow.
They wrestled each other onto the cabin floor, and when the head steward tried to break them up they started to fight with him, witnesses told reporters later.
The pilot decided to turn the plane around as he feared the fight could break out again even though the two had been separated by passengers and crew members, Mehdi Guenin, a spokesman for the airline, said. He said no one was injured during the altercation.
òThe two passengers were handed over to the police of the canton of Zurich after the plane landed on Sunday evening," Guenin said.
Swiss media later reported that the two men had been arrested and were being questioned.
Guenin said the decision to head back to Zurich rather than making an emergency landing in Moscow was made to avoid administrative difficulties. The airline also said later: "The incident didn't reach the degree of emergency for flying to an alternate airport."
It said the crew had complied with relevant regulations and procedures while handling the incident.
Zurich Cantonal Police spokesman Werner Schaub said that alcohol had clearly played a role in the mid-air fight, Xinhua news agency reported.
Eating a meal
The plane?s 200 passengers were put up in a Zurich hotel before they were put on flights to Beijing with other airlines. Its own flight to the Chinese capital was already fully booked.
All the passengers had arrived in Beijing by around 5am yesterday, after almost a day's delay.
A witness onboard the plane said the older passenger hit the younger man on the head as he had lowered his seat in front too far while the older passenger was eating a meal. The younger passenger fought back, the witness said.
The airline introduced the flight between Beijing and Zurich in February. Most of the passengers were tourists, with China having overtaken Japan in the number of tourists visiting Switzerland.
Chinese civil aviation experts said the pilot had done the right thing by flying back to ensure the safety of other passengers and crew members onboard.
Under Chinese Aviation Law, the pilot has the right to take proper measures to protect passengers when there has been a disturbance in the cabin or when the safety of the flight is under threat.
Li Shurong, a Shanghai lawyer, said that passengers on the plane could sue the two men for any losses that the delay had caused them.
The incident was the third diversion involving Chinese passengers in a week.
Last Wednesday, an Air China flight from Beijing to New York was forced to return to Beijing after a threatening message was received.
And the following day, a Shenzhen Airlines flight was diverted to an airport in central China after receiving a threatening call. A man who admitted making the fake call has been arrested.
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