From New York Post · · 1m 20s
Two men restrained on a Qatar Airways flight to Doha
Crew and passengers spent hours holding down two men on a Melbourne to Doha flight after an onboard attack.
In brief
Crew and passengers spent hours holding down two men on a Melbourne to Doha flight after an onboard attack. Cabin crew handled a ten-hour ordeal in the air with no backup, and the applause when police boarded says how far it went. Originally reported by New York Post.
Chaos at 35,000 feet
Passengers and crew on flight VA7 out of Melbourne had to physically restrain two men after a violent outburst on Friday afternoon.
A Virgin flight, Qatar crew
VA7 was a Virgin Australia service to Doha operated by Qatar Airways. The two men allegedly started assaulting staff soon after departure.
Spitting, headbutting, threats
Witnesses said flight attendants were spat on and headbutted, and that the men made threats about having a gun.
Seven people and zip ties
It reportedly took up to seven people plus zip ties to hold down each man, with crew hands-on for roughly ten straight hours.
“Really big props to the Qatar flight attendants, they were hands on for about 10 hours straight”
Applause when police boarded
One passenger noted the date, the 25th anniversary of September 11, and said the cabin clapped when Doha authorities came aboard.
Handed over in Doha
Qatar Airways confirmed both men were restrained and given to local authorities on arrival. Australian Federal Police and Virgin Australia have not commented.
“The safety and wellbeing of our crew and passengers remain our highest priority.”
What to remember
Cabin crew handled a ten-hour ordeal in the air with no backup, and the applause when police boarded says how far it went.
