At the end of last week there was an incident with a mask refuser on a Ryanair flight from Tenerife to Manchester. This ended for the 24-year-old man at the police station at the British destination. The troublemaker even injured a flight attendant with a headbutt.
According to reports, the passenger was said to have been drunk and threatened a flight attendant that he would smash his head. According to the Daily Mail newspaper, he is said to have had three quarters of a bottle of vodka. The request to put the mouth and nose protection back on was not only ignored, but the cabin crew were also threatened with massive threats.
The captain informed air traffic control about the incident on board and tried to divert to another airport. However, this was refused by the ATC, because due to the corona pandemic, those airports that were in question at the time of the threat were closed. So the journey to Manchester was continued. The flight attendants were able to get the situation in the cabin under control and calm the troublemaker.
The video below, captured by passengers using cell phones, shows the incident and the subsequent arrest.
Arrested after landing
After landing at the British airport, the police entered the Boeing 737-800 and led the 24-year-old man away. The other passengers are said to have approved the intervention of the executive with loud applause. The locally responsible public prosecutor's office ordered the arrest and is investigating property damage and endangering aviation security.
In the meantime, a first hearing by the examining magistrate has already taken place. In this, the accused is said to have stated that he had already started consuming alcohol around an hour before departure and had already boarded the aircraft while at least drunk. According to the prosecutor, the 24-year-old repeatedly failed to respond to the request to put his mask back on and then insulted the crew and even threatened them seriously. The law enforcement authorities also confirmed that he had injured a flight attendant with a headbutt, which is why proceedings for bodily harm are ongoing.
The man was released under certain conditions after the first hearing by the investigative court. For example, he has to report personally to the police station twice a week. No further measures were specified.