A man has been dragged off a plane at Manchester Airport by armed police after being caught smoking in the toilet. The incident happened on the Ryanair flight RK3442 from Palma to Manchester on Tuesday, May 30.
Footage taken by a passenger onboard shows cops entering the plane before taking the man who was dressed in a grey t-shirt, shorts, a baseball cap and flip flops to a waiting squad car. Crews then informed passengers that they were free to leave the aircraft.
A dad who was on the flight told Manchester Evening News: "It was literally about 20 minutes after take-off. One of the flight attendants could smell smoke coming from the toilet.
"They took all his details and then announced it to the whole plane. I was really pleased because they'd named and shamed the person.
"If you're willing to have a smoke and put 180 souls on board lives at risk, then you should be named and shamed."
He added that the man allegedly smoking looked 'relatively calm' but that the rest of the flight had been left 'on edge'. "There were a few people not happy on that plane, I'll tell you," he said, adding that there were a number of families on the aircraft.
"I was with my two daughters who are seven and ten," he said. "They were pretty frightened."
The dad praised the crew of the flight stating that their handling of the incident was 'fantastic.'
A spokesperson for Ryanair said: "The crew of this flight from Palma to Manchester (May 30) called ahead for police assistance after a passenger was found smoking onboard. The passenger was removed from the aircraft by local police upon landing at Manchester Airport."
It is understood the passenger was not arrested as Ryanair did not pursue prosecution.
Don't miss the latest news from around Scotland and beyond - Sign up to our newsletter here.
