An Alaska Airlines flight from Oakland, California, to Portland, Oregon, was canceled after a violent mid-flight incident in which a flight attendant had to physically intervene to stop a passenger from assaulting a woman.
The February 2 incident, caught on video and widely shared online, shows the flight attendant repeatedly punching the man to force him to release the woman’s hair.
The unruly passenger was later arrested, and Alaska Airlines has banned him from future flights.
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According to the New York Post, the male flight attendant aboard Flight 221 to Portland, Oregon, was seen struggling to free a female passenger after the man seated behind her suddenly grabbed her hair. “Let go of her hair!” someone is heard yelling in the video as the flight attendant pries the man’s grip.
When the passenger refused to release her, the flight attendant resorted to striking him multiple times in the throat and torso.
As seen in the video, the flight attendant then restrained the screaming man and called for “another capable male” to assist in keeping him under control. Witnesses on board said the man had been “saying weird stuff and rocking back and forth” before the attack, as per the New York Post.
After the plane returned to the gate at Oakland International Airport, authorities arrested the passenger. The flight was cancelled and passengers were rebooked later in the day.
Victim and airline respond
The woman who was attacked later recounted the terrifying experience, stating, “My hair was not in anyone’s way to provoke anyone to grab it,” as quoted by the outlet View from the Wing.
She described how the man exhibited erratic behaviour, banging his head multiple times on the seat before briefly losing and regaining consciousness. “He grabbed my hair close to the scalp. Had I leaned forward, he could have pulled my hair out. I was afraid this man was going to punch me in the head and I am thankful for the FA and other passengers who stepped in to help,” she said.
Alaska Airlines confirmed the incident and commended the flight crew’s quick response. “He appeared to be experiencing a violent medical episode that involved an ongoing physical assault against other passengers and our crew,” the airline stated. “Our crew responded to this chaotic situation quickly and kept all guests safe until law enforcement could intervene”, the statement further said.
The airline further announced that the passenger has been banned from Alaska Airlines and its regional carrier Horizon Air due to the “nature of the physical assault,” according to the New York Post.
