A man on a Virgin Australia flight from Perth to Melbourne decided this venue was the perfect time to get naked and run down the aisle of the plane, knocking a crew member over in the process. This is – for whatever reason – not allowed, and the plane had to turn back.
Virgin Flight 696 (nice) was forced to turn back to Perth just an hour-and-a-half into the three-and-a-half hour flight because of a “disruptive passenger on board,” according to a statement sent to NBC News regarding the May 27 incident. Once the Boeing 737-800 landed, the naked fella was taken into Australian Federal Police custody.
Before that could happen, two air marshals had to restrain and handcuff the guy so they could safely touch down, according to 9 News.
Here’s what a Virgin Australia spokesperson said about the incident, from 9 News:
“On arrival in Perth, the aircraft was met by the Australian Federal Police and the disruptive guest was offloaded,” the spokesperson said.
“The safety of our guests and crew is our top priority and we sincerely apologise to guests impacted.”
It’s understood the majority of passengers were re-booked onto flights to Melbourne.
Once on the ground, the man was arrested and “taken to hospital for assessments,” according to NBC News. Right now, there’s no word on what charges the man will be facing, and he’ll apparently appear in court sometime next month.
