7 days ago
Shocking moment 'drunk' passenger is arrested 'after punching air hostess and shouting "the plane is going to crash"' in front of screaming cabin crew
Dramatic new video footage has shown the appalling moment a 'drunk' passenger was arrested after allegedly hitting an air hostess in the face while onboard a flight.
The male holidaymaker, travelling onboard a TUI flight from Gran Canaria, Spain to Birmingham, on Tuesday morning, left dozens of passengers and flight attendants terrified after he reportedly 'punched' an air hostess.
The horrifying outburst, which witnesses told The Sun began as the flight was beginning its descent and lasted up to an hour, left screaming members of the cabin crew petrified following unsuccessful attempts to subdue the rowdy passenger with a 'restraint kit'.
Witnesses claimed that the disorderly traveller, who they alleged to be drunk, even began 'shouting that the plane was going to crash' as the pilot slammed on the brakes during landing.
Having gotten up to go to the toilet compartment, the man, who West Midlands Police have now identified as 49-year-old Paul Self, then avoided desperate pleas by staff for him to return to his seat.
One witness, who described the incident as 'a nightmare' added: 'There was a lot of screaming and shouting between him and the crew, and then he punched an air hostess in the nose.
'One minute he was calm, then he was throwing blows. He was extremely erratic'.
As staff onboard pleaded and 'screamed' for police assistance, children were reportedly left in tears given the pandemonium taking place throughout the aircraft.
The shocking footage shows a terrifying scene as members of the public watched on as air hostesses attempted to calm the passenger.
Meanwhile, in a bid to control the rest of the fearful aircraft of passengers, another member of the cabin crew is heard shouting: 'sit down, everybody sit down. Sit down now'.
Following the dramatic ordeal, those onboard clapped and cheered as Mr Self was eventually escorted from the flight by West Midlands Police officers.
Upon being greeted by officers, another witness told The Sun that the drunken yob had initially 'put his hands up and said "Arrest me".
Then, despite 'resisting' the arrest, officers were able to quickly surround and cuff the disorderly passenger, ending an hour-long ordeal that had left staff and travellers in tears.
A spokesperson for West Midlands Police confirmed that the disorderly passenger, 49-year-old Paul Self, had been charged with three counts of common assault and is set to appear at Birmingham Magistrates Court on June 10.
They said: 'We were called to an inbound flight at Birmingham Airport in the early hours of Tuesday (27 May) morning, following reports of a disruptive passenger.
It comes after dramatic footage obtained by MailOnline (pictured) showed a British woman being dragged off a Ryanair flight and thrown to the floor by security staff after she allegedly assaulted passengers and forced a plane to divert to Portugal on May 18
'After landing, officers boarded the plane and arrested a 49-year-old man on suspicion of assault.
'Paul Self has now been charged with three counts of common assault.
'The 49-year-old man will appear at Birmingham Magistrates Court on 10 June.'
It comes after a British woman was filmed being dragged off a Ryanair flight and thrown to the floor by security staff after she allegedly assaulted passengers and f orced a plane to divert to Portugal on May 18.
Dramatic footage obtained by MailOnline showed a woman being led off the grounded plane by several members of staff, after the flight from Tenerife to Prestwick was diverted.
Meanwhile, a second video showed the woman being led outside the plane on the tarmac of the Portuguese airport.
Blair Morgan, a passenger on the plane, told MailOnline that passengers were left terrified after the 'angry, hostile passenger was being aggressive towards staff and other passengers'.
'The passenger made a [false] bomb threat towards everyone on the plane, along with saying she would "bottle" people with a glass wine bottle.'
