Ryanair flight diverted after mid-air brawl creates chaos: reports
Public Security Police in Portugal said they were forced to physically remove 8 people involved in the fight
A Canary Islands-bound flight from London, United Kingdom, had to make an unexpected stop on Friday, after a brawl reportedly broke out involving eight people, creating a chaotic moment.
Data on the website FlightAware.com shows Ryanair flight 3511 took off from London Luton just before 8:15 a.m. on its weekly four-hour flight to Arrecife, Lanzarote, in the Canary Islands.
But according to tracking data, the flight was diverted to Faro, Portugal, landing at about 10:50 a.m. — 55 minutes earlier than expected in Arrecife.
The Daily Mail UK reported that a witness said there was a group of men who appeared to have been drinking, who were bothering some female passengers.
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A Ryanair flight from the UK was forced to land in Portugal on Friday after an onboard brawl broke out. ( Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images/File / Getty Images)
According to a passenger who witnessed the melee, things started to get out of hand when a flight attendant attempted to intervene, but got knocked over.
The captain then warned those on the flight that the behavior was unacceptable and would not be tolerated. If the behavior continued, he reportedly warned, the flight would be diverted to Portugal.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RYAAY | RYANAIR HOLDINGS PLC | 43.94 | -1.08 | -2.40% |
Despite the captain’s warning, the witness told the publication that the pandemonium continued. Twenty minutes later, everyone on board was told the flight would be landing.
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The Portugal Resident reported that the Public Security Police (PSP) in Portugal said in a statement that they were called to deal with the "presence of eight disorderly passengers" on the flight.
The flight was diverted to Faro, Portugal. (Google Maps / Google Maps)
When the officers arrived, they reportedly saw passengers "causing a disturbance," doing things like "shouting and hitting the cabin luggage lockers repeatedly," and "drinking alcoholic beverages and disregarding the instruction given by the flight crew."
The officers told the disorderly group to leave the plane, and seven of the eight men complied.
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"One of the unruly passengers adopted became hostile, refusing to leave and repeatedly disobeying the orders directed at him," the PSP said. "Consequently, the police were forced to proceed with his arrest and removal from the aircraft, using physical force due to his constant resistance."
The passenger was charged with crimes of disobedience and resisting.
Ryanair did not immediately respond to inquiries from Fox News Digital.
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Once the chaos subsided, the flight was back on its way to the final destination, taking off from Faro at about 11:50 a.m. and landing in Arrecife at 1:24 p.m.