Passenger dragged off plane after request for specific seat for his size refused
An overweight passenger was dragged out of a plane kicking and screaming after allegedly demanding an emergency aisle seat for his bigger frame.
The tourist reportedly complained there was not enough room in his window seat on the Thai Lion Air flight leaving from Bangkok on Wednesday.
He requested to be transferred to the emergency exit seat after spotting it had more leg room - but appeared to throw a mega tantrum when flight attendants refused to grant his request, reports The Mirror.
The man was said to have delayed the flight by around an hour before police arrived to drag him off the Boeing 737 aircraft. Footage shows officers yanking the stubborn man, seen in the video wearing an orange Garfield shirt, out off his seat. He then sprawled out and blocked the aisle in protest.
Furious passengers screamed at him to "get out of the way" as airport police hauled him off the jet.
Another female passenger was heard calling him "selfish". One woman later yelled at him: "When you said apologise for the first thing I said, don't forget that."
Police carried the man by his arms and legs to eventually remove him from the aircraft. It took off around an hour later from the Don Mueang International Airport (DMK).
A passenger who recorded footage of the incident said: "At first, I thought we couldn't take off because the man had fallen ill.
"It turned out he just thought the economy seat was too crowded and insisted on moving to the emergency exit. The flight attendants had to call the police because he refused to cooperate."
The Irish Mirror's Crime Writers Michael O'Toole and Paul Healy are writing a new weekly newsletter called Crime Ireland. Click here to sign up and get it delivered to your inbox every week
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