A London-bound Air India flight returned to Delhi airport on Monday morning due to the “serious unruly behaviour” of a passenger onboard.

The Air India flight AI 111 scheduled to operate on the Delhi-London-Heathrow route returned shortly after departure.

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An FIR was lodged as the accused person allegedly misbehaved and caused physical harm to two of the cabin crew members.

Officials said the accused continued to create a scene even after verbal and written warnings and the pilot-in-command had to return to Delhi. Subsequently, the accused person was handed over to the security authorities concerned and adequate action was initiated.

An Air India official told a news agency, “AI-111 Delhi to London flight with 256 passengers landed safely at Delhi airport after an unruly behaviour of a passenger created ruckus on board.”

The flight, which took off for Heathrow Airport (London) at around 6:30 am on Monday returned to Delhi airport at around 10 am after the crew reported to pilots about the physical altercation mid-flight.

Air India, in a statement, said, “Air India flight AI 111 scheduled to operate Delhi-London Heathrow on April 10, 2023, returned to Delhi shortly after departure due to the serious unruly behaviour of a passenger on board. Not heeding verbal and written warnings, the passenger continued with unruly behaviour including causing physical harm to two of the cabin crew members.”

“The pilot in command decided to return to Delhi and the passenger was handed over to the security personnel upon landing. An FIR has also been lodged with the police. Safety, security and dignity of all on board are important to us at Air India. We are providing all possible support to the affected crew members. We regret the inconvenience caused to the passengers and have rescheduled the flight to depart for London this afternoon,” Air India said.

After the plane landed at Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA), Air India filed a police complaint about the passenger’s “indecent behaviour” at the police station. Legal action is being taken against the said passenger.

The airline said it has also informed the aviation regulator Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) about the incident.

Airlines have witnessed such incidents of unruly behaviour by flyers in the last few months. Last week, a drunk air passenger on board an Indigo flight from Delhi to Bengaluru tried to open the flap of the emergency doors. Subsequently, the matter was reported to the agencies concerned and appropriate action was initiated.

During the end of March, two passengers travelling on an Indigo flight from Dubai to Mumbai continued consuming alcohol onboard despite multiple warnings from the crew. They verbally abused the crew and co-passengers.

In order to deal with unruly behaviour, DGCA has issued CAR, Section 3- Air Transport, Series M, and Part VI titled ‘Handling of unruly/ disruptive passengers’.

As per the procedure defined in the CAR, airlines are required to follow a prescribed procedure for holding passengers accountable before they are placed in the ‘No Fly List’ by the airline. Based on the information provided by the airlines, ‘No Fly List’ is maintained by the DGCA.