An Australian Navy officer has been charged with assault and disorderly conduct after a midair meltdown on a flight to London.
Lieutenant commander Terrance Albert George, 57, allegedly lashed out at flight attendants when they tried to move him from his allocated seat.
He had been accused of upsetting a woman passenger with an unwanted advance, police sources told the Herald Sun.
Canberra-based George was this morning charged with two counts of common assault and one count of disorderly conduct on an aircraft.
Following the incident onboard Qantas Flight 9 from Melbourne, George was restrained in his seat until the plane arrived at London’s Heathrow Airport.
Up to 15 police were waiting when the plane touched down at 5.15am Thursday local time.
Passengers started phoning the Defence Department to complain soon after the plane touched down.
George, who had travelled to the UK for a recruitment drive, was taken to Heathrow police station for questioning.
A Navy representative arrived at the police station in the afternoon and waited for the officer to be released, but declined to comment.
George was bailed and is due to appear in Uxbridge Magistrates Court on Friday morning local time.
By: Si Jones - 24th May 2009 at 09:05
Navy Lt Cdrs……getting a knock back from the ladies does nothing for your ego! (Don’t tell the wife I said that!) 😉
By: PMN - 23rd May 2009 at 11:01
some people have a complete personality change under the influence of alcohol!!!
That’s the bit I kind of disagree with. I don’t thint it really changes, more that their true self comes out. That aggression and nastiness has to be in the person already somewhere, alcohol doesn’t ‘make’ people nasty. That said, admittedly the effect when these people drink is pretty much the same.
Paul
By: steve rowell - 23rd May 2009 at 02:35
I’ve flown ‘under the influence’ myself probably getting on for 200 sectors, including 12 hour long haul sectors. In fact, frankly I’ve done flights where I’ve been really quite wasted, but I’ve never felt like doing something of the nature that has descibed here. I wish people would stop using alcohol as an excuse! That behaviour is either in you or it isn’t. Admittedly, alcohol can bring it out of you, but it doesn’t cause it. There’s a difference.
Paul
But as we all know Paul…there’s happy drunks and there’s nasty drunks…some people have a complete personality change under the influence of alcohol!!!
By: PMN - 23rd May 2009 at 02:31
Usually in most cases it’s a combination of popping sleeping pills on such a long flight with several glasses of alcohol
I’ve flown ‘under the influence’ myself probably getting on for 200 sectors, including 12 hour long haul sectors. In fact, frankly I’ve done flights where I’ve been really quite wasted, but I’ve never felt like doing something of the nature that has descibed here. I wish people would stop using alcohol as an excuse! That behaviour is either in you or it isn’t. Admittedly, alcohol can bring it out of you, but it doesn’t cause it. There’s a difference.
Paul
By: steve rowell - 23rd May 2009 at 00:25
Hmm… I wonder what made him react like that. I’m not saying doing so is ever justified, it would just be interesting to know the cause as these articles rarely indicate what it actually is.
Paul
Usually in most cases it’s a combination of popping sleeping pills on such a long flight with several glasses of alcohol
By: PMN - 22nd May 2009 at 12:22
Hmm… I wonder what made him react like that. I’m not saying doing so is ever justified, it would just be interesting to know the cause as these articles rarely indicate what it actually is.
Paul
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May 22, 2009 at 4:52 am