On board a Vistara flight from Muscat via Dhaka to Mumbai, an “unruly PAX” made life a living hell for the cabin crew. He is said to have not only harassed the flight attendants, but also blinded them with an object.

According to official information, the incident occurred on September 6, 2023. About half an hour before landing, the 30-year-old man is said to have gotten up and attacked a flight attendant. He is said to have forcibly hugged her and tried to kiss her. Attentive passengers immediately intervened and helped the cabin staff. Shortly afterwards her colleagues also arrived. They are said to have been blinded by the “unruly PAX” with the help of an unspecified object.

Before this incident, the 30-year-old is said to have behaved completely inconspicuously. Neither the police nor the airline Vistara have provided any further information as to why the man might have suddenly exhibited this behavior. According to Vistara, the Airbus A320neo, which has the registration VT-TNI, was in service on the day of the incident.

When asked, the carrier said: “On September 06th, an incident involving an unruly passenger was reported on Vistara flight UK 234 from Muscat to Mumbai. “In view of the gross misconduct, the captain issued a warning and decided to take the passenger into custody.”

The “kiss attempt” now has criminal consequences for the man, because shortly after landing he was not only arrested by the police, but also brought before an examining judge a day later. Through his lawyer, the accused argued that he suffered from mental illness and could not speak English or Hindi, so an interpreter was necessary. Nevertheless, pre-trial detention was ordered and the hearing is to be continued at a later date, with a sworn interpreter present. No further information was provided regarding the nationality of unruly PAX. However, due to the claim that the local languages ​​are not spoken, it can be assumed that he could not be an Indian citizen.