Chaotic footage captures the moment a midair fight broke out between passengers on a flight bound for the United Kingdom on Thursday, with reports indicating the incident led the plane to divert its course.
Flight LS896, en route from Antalya, Turkey, to Manchester, England, was redirected to Belgium following what the airline described as the “appalling behavior” of two “disruptive” passengers onboard, representatives told the .
“Both individuals were removed from the aircraft in Brussels, and the flight proceeded to Manchester,” the representatives said.
Footage circulating online appears to show passengers exchanging punches in the aisle as others scream.
The cause of the altercation was not immediately clear. However, an eyewitness alleged that a male passenger made “racist” remarks earlier in the flight, the Sun .
“From the start of the flight, a passenger seated behind us began making racist remarks—quiet enough that others couldn’t clearly hear, but loud enough for us to,” the traveler alleged.
According to the eyewitness, tensions escalated after the man—who had allegedly been drinking—was unable to purchase cigarettes onboard and became aggressive.
Cabin crew attempted to defuse the situation, but the dispute ultimately turned physical.
After diverting to Brussels, authorities removed the two passengers from the aircraft. The flight then resumed its journey and landed in Manchester at around 10 p.m., the Post reported.
Jet2 confirmed both individuals have been .
“We can confirm that the two disruptive passengers will be banned from flying with us for life,” Jet2 told the Post. “We will also vigorously pursue them to recover the costs that we incurred as a result of this diversion.”
The airline added, “As a family-friendly airline, we take a zero-tolerance approach to disruptive passenger behavior, and we are very sorry that other customers and our colleagues onboard had to experience this too.”
Jet2 did not immediately respond to Digital’s request for comment.
Digital’s Kelly McGreal contributed to this report.