Looks like this official statement by Cathay Pacific as reported here indicates the two passengers were indeed officially thanked. I am not sure if he was offered first clas travel for life though.
What I don't get was how the green eye monsters surfaced so fast and early in the thread.
Unruly passenger injures flight attendant
April 23, 2012, 9:12 amAAP
A 52-year-old Filipino man has been charged with disorderly conduct, after a crew member was assaulted on a Cathay Pacific flight, reports say.
Cathay Pacific Airways says a passenger assaulted a crew member on a Bangkok-to-Hong Kong flight before being restrained by two passengers and other staff members.
The Hong Kong airline said in a statement that a female flight attendant was slightly injured in Monday's incident and hospitalised briefly.
Cathay thanked the two passengers, who were slightly injured but did not need to go to hospital. The other 398 passengers and 16 crew members aboard were not hurt.
Hong Kong newspapers reported that a 52-year-old Filipino man was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.