Orlando Incident

[JohnnyRocket]

Three hundred passengers have been stranded at Orlando airport, after their flight carrying them from Cancun to Manchester BY437B was forced to divert because of an unruly passenger on board. The incident happened 12 hours ago (4am GMT - 11 pmEST) and the passengers have all been stuck in orlando since then. Apparently one of the Polish passengers had one too many Vodkas and kicked a stewardess in the face.

[oversteer]

Not a good day for Britannia then - Sanford-Gatwick flight diverted back midflight at about the same time..

Luckily there are lots of hotels in the area !

[LTNman]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/4615370.stm

More than 200 UK-bound passengers have been delayed in Florida after their flight from Mexico was diverted by a disturbance on the plane.
A man said to be drunk allegedly assaulted flight crew members and smashed up one of the plane's toilets.

The Thomsonfly plane from Cancun in Mexico to Manchester was diverted to Sanford Airport in Orlando, where passengers were put up in hotels.

The FBI said a man had been charged with "interfering with flight crew."

The 232 other passengers are now due to fly back to the UK on Monday.

The plane had been due to land at Manchester Airport at 0745 GMT on Sunday.

The FBI said the passenger, who has been named as Rafal Krawczyk, assaulted three flight attendants and several passengers were needed to restrain him

It confirmed he had been charged with "interfering with a flight crew" and was due to appear in court on Tuesday.

He was travelling on a Polish passport but is resident in Ireland, said the FBI.

Ian MacGranthin, a passenger on flight BY437B, told BBC News: "He attacked a couple of crew members and a few people got knocked about. Eventually he had to be restrained."

A Thomsonfly spokesman said: "The captain took the decision for the safety of all passengers to take the aircraft into Sanford."

The plane was met by local police, who escorted the passenger away.

Thomsonfly said all the remaining passengers would be flown to Birmingham Airport on Monday morning, although it is not yet known what time the flight will land.

The flight had originally been due to stop at Birmingham and Manchester but will now only land at Birmingham.

Those who need to travel to Manchester are likely to be taken by bus.

[Aranmore]

oversteer .... a very GOOD day for Britannia! Two very difficult incidents handled in a very professional and safe manner. Well done to all the crew members concerned!

[whattimedoweland]

Hopefully 3 years behind bars for the ******, may help him sober up.One day maybe these idiots will realise we have the law on our side.

Well done to the cabin and flight crew and I hope the stewardess involved with the kick to the face makes a good recovery.

If he does'nt do time in the States I have no doubt/hope!!, Britannia will press charges on return to the UK.

WTDWL.

[MarkD]

Let's hope the local TSA types take out their frustrations on him...

[oversteer]

oversteer .... a very GOOD day for Britannia! Two very difficult incidents handled in a very professional and safe manner. Well done to all the crew members concerned!

Yes, that's true. Britannia managed to find hotel rooms for everyone. Considering it was 4am, there were probably 600 people, and not being the biggest of airports, I think they did well to get people accommodated.

Also - apparently - the violent passenger was totally restrained with copious amounts of duck tape ! And when airport security came to collect him, nobody could find knife or scissors to cut him free :D so maybe TSA scanning has SOME benefits :ok:

[craigbrodie]

i particulary enjoyed the quote from one passenger on the six o'clock news.

goes something along the lines of

"when he tried to open the emergency exit, thats when everyone jumped on him"

[notdavegorman]

My hope is that the ****** is sued for every penny of expense that his behaviour caused. After a long term of incarceration of course.

[johnfg]

I think airlines have to take responsibility when it comes to drunk customers boarding the A/C. When I learned to fly it was my understanding that it was against the law for people under the influence to fly, that included passengers. Is this the correct? If so, why are airlines allowing themselves to break the law?

I can honestly say that I have never had an alchoholic drink before or during a flight, but I know the human factors involved. I have often flown as a passenger and sometimes watch in disbelief as people get wasted on the jet and the crew still serve them drink. UNBELIEEEEEVABLE! This affects everyone on board, making the other passengers etc around them uncomfortable. In the interests of aviation safety these people should not be allowed to board, imagine what could have happened if that drunk on the Orlando flight got onto the flight deck? If he's as big as they say I would not have held out much hope if he got to the controls. Happy Flying.

[StudentInDebt]

Orlando -- A magistrate in Orlando's federal court Tuesday ordered a Polish citizen held without bail on a charge that he assaulted and intimidated flight attendants on a U.K.-bound flight diverted to Sanford's airport.

Rafal Marcin Krawczyk, 32, appeared in an oversized red Seminole County Jail jumpsuit before U.S. Magistrate James Glazebrook, who agreed to a federal prosecutor's request that Krawczyk be detained until at least a second court hearing Friday. Assistant U.S. Attorney Tanya Wilson said the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement has applied to hold Krawczyk indefinitely to deport him after his criminal proceedings.

"We are not going to fight deportation," Assistant Federal Public Defender Stephen J. Langs said after the hearing.

On Saturday, the crew of a Thomsonfly plane en route from Cancun, Mexico, to Manchester and Birmingham in England decided to make an unscheduled stop at Orlando Sanford International Airport, fearing Krawczyk was "out of control" and would disrupt the trans-Atlantic flight. Krawczyk lives and works in Belfast, Northern Ireland.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/orange/orl-mcfbriefs18_606jan18,0,455559.story