Man in Blazer Attacks Flight Passenger After Accidental Bump
A fight broke out on a Southwest Airlines plane in Dallas on Monday 6 March, after a man claimed another passenger bumped into his wife.[0] Video footage from the incident, which was shared on the same day, shows a man wearing a tan blazer and a baseball cap attacking a heavily tattooed fellow passenger and shouting at him.[1] Passengers attempted to separate the two men, and were heard shouting, “Do not hit him again” and “step away”.[2]
Fox News Digital was reportedly told by the woman who captured the video that the tattooed man had “inadvertently jostled his wife and began to verbally spar with her”.[1] The man in the blazer then said, “I’m telling everybody what happened. He approached me aggressively with my family. Don’t play with my family. Tell them what happened, tell them what you did. I will sit down in jail for you approaching my family. I will die for my family.”[2]
The Dallas Police Department reported that no arrests were made after both individuals were taken off the aircraft, as reported by Fox News Digital.[3] Southwest Airlines told ABC15 they commend their flight crew for managing the situation, and said the flight from Dallas to Phoenix arrived on-time and as scheduled.[3]
Johnson, situated in a few rows back from the turmoil, a speech language pathologist in Arizona, reported that the tattooed man was merely seated and had no option but to be unable to fight back or protect himself.[4] Johnson stated that the next thing he knew, the man was being punched.[5] In Johnson's video, the man wearing a blazer is captured while restraining another man in a headlock and hurling expletives at him, while bystanders attempt to step in.[5]
It is not the first incident of unruly passenger behavior on a plane in recent months.[4] Passengers on a flight from Havana, Cuba, to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, had to evacuate on Sunday due to a bird strike that generated smoke in the cabin.[1] And Francisco Severo Torres, 33, from Leominster, Massachusetts was charged with one count of interference and attempted interference with flight crew members using a dangerous weapon after he stabbed a flight attendant with a broken spoon.[6]
This report was contributed to by CNN's Holmes Lybrand.[5] Join the conversation to be part of the discussion.[7]
0. “Arizona woman captures moments of brawl onboard Southwest flight” ABC15 Arizona in Phoenix, 9 Mar. 2023, https://www.abc15.com/news/local-news/az-woman-captures-moments-of-brawl-onboard-southwest-flight
1. “Wild video captures brawl on Southwest flight after passenger bumps into mom” New York Post , 8 Mar. 2023, https://nypost.com/2023/03/08/wild-video-captures-brawl-on-southwest-airlines-flight
2. “Fight Breaks Out On Airplane After Guy Allegedly Bumped Into A Family: “I Will Die For My Family”” Whiskey Riff, 8 Mar. 2023, https://www.whiskeyriff.com/2023/03/08/fight-breaks-out-on-airplane-after-guy-allegedly-bumped-into-a-family-i-will-die-for-my-family/
3. “‘I will die for my family': Fight erupts on Southwest Airlines flight after passenger bumps into man's wife” msnNOW, 8 Mar. 2023, https://www.msn.com/en-gb/lifestyle/travel/i-will-die-for-my-family-fight-erupts-on-southwest-airlines-flight-after-passenger-bumps-into-mans-wife/ar-AA18mfgR
4. “Punches thrown, chaos erupts aboard Southwest Airlines plane in Dallas” AOL, 8 Mar. 2023, https://www.aol.com/news/punches-thrown-chaos-erupts-aboard-191109582.html
5. “Punches thrown on Southwest plane in Dallas, according to witness and video” KAKE, 9 Mar. 2023, https://www.kake.com/story/48518462/punches-thrown-on-southwest-plane-in-dallas-according-to-witness-and-video
6. “Wild moment man attacks fellow passenger on Southwest Airlines flight” Daily Mail, 7 Mar. 2023, https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-11831067/Wild-moment-man-attacks-fellow-passenger-Southwest-Airlines-flight.html
7. “Fight breaks out on Southwest Airline flight from Dallas to Phoenix” KVIA, 9 Mar. 2023, https://kvia.com/top-stories/2023/03/09/fight-breaks-out-on-southwest-airline-flight-from-dallas-to-phoenix/
