A man on a flight bound for London attacked crew members and attempted to open the emergency door 30,000 feet in the air before another passenger tackled him, according to reports.
The Wizz Air flight from Tel Aviv to London Luton airport on Monday was forced to land in Belgrade after the “erratic” behaviour of one passenger, The Sun reports.
Victor Troboloni, 45, told the newspaper he tackled the man after he tried to force open the emergency door and went to punch a male flight attendant, placing him in a headlock before crew members also helped to hold him down.
Footage published by The Sun show a number of crew members holding the man down alongside Mr Troboloni in the gangway of the plane, in front of distressed passengers.
Mr Troboloni explained how he had spotted the man behaving strangely earlier on the flight, pacing up and down the plane.
After the man was restrained, passengers reportedly stayed on the flight for around an hour before it made an emergency landing to Belgrade.
Many of the people on board were women and children, who were left visibly shaken and upset, Mr Troboloni told The Sun, describing it as a “very scary situation”.
Mr Troboloni originally from Albania but living in Zurich, was on his way to visit his sick mother in St Albans.
A Wizz Air spokesperson said: “The company is dealing with the onward flight of all customers to London. The safety and security of passengers and crew are the company’s top priority. The company regrets the inconvenience caused by this unexpected incident.”
In July a British Airways passenger reportedly stabbed another man with a broken bottle in a violent attack on board a flight from London Gatwick to St Lucia.
The fight broke out between two men during the eight-and-a-half-hour flight, leading flight attendants to reportedly restrain the attacker.
Meanwhile Blue star Lee Ryan was found guilty of racially aggravated assault in January after telling a black flight attendant “I want your chocolate children” while drunk on a flight from Glasgow to London.
