Truly Disturbing passenger behaviour.
Flew into the UK last night, j class, and sat next to a middle aged couple (Brits) who had 5A&B. I was across the aisle from them and when they boarded they seemd OK, apart from the champagne wasn't cold enough etc. etc. Taxying out, they insisted on a 2nd round of champagne, which they kept hold of through take off, which actually annoyed me a bit, but thats a separate issue. Anyway, as we took off they held hands, and started to pick out items from the Duty free book as gifts for each other,and I thought, yeah, thats nice.
After a few more scoops, it was time for dinner, and he wanted champagne, white wine, and red wine. And so it continued, for about an hour or so.
Then it really started.
They had a loud argument, ending in him giving her a proper thump or two in the face. I was shocked, and livid. I got up, went forward, and mentioned to the CC that there was a "domestic in 5AB, and that they might want to keep an eye. "No problem, thank for letting us know, we'll keep a watching brief, incase it escalates" was the reply.
Well, it DID escalate, he assaulted her physically no less than 5 times, and verbally continuosly, for the rest of the flight. When she got up to go and find another seat he physically dragged her back, and replaced her luggage in the overhead bins. everytime he had a drink, it started again, often witnessed by the CC.
What action did the CC take ? None other than to continue to supply him with vast quantities of Booze, exacerbating the situation.
So, the quesstion is, what should they / could they have done to end this truly awful display of abuse ?