sinala1
Yes, good point about having flight deck door open, or indeed possible injury to one of the flight crew, I hadnt considered that. Perhaps it would be more likely on a multi-crew flight where a 'spare' could be called upon if necesaary, but I guess this depends on how severe the incident appears to the CC...I also wasnt aware the captain could pass his full authority to the cabin crew.
I think any arrest carried out by a person with a warrant card would be equivalent to a citizens arrest on the ground, certainly in the uk, so not quite the same as being arrested by a police officer...I presume an airline captain has similar authority to a sea captain in this respect?
I was also going to suggest that cultural differences may have played a part in this instance...