Police have now arrested a British tourist who had to be overpowered after allegedly trying to open a plane door during his flight to Lanzarote.
Two off-duty cops heading to the island on holiday reportedly had to intervene and bring the man under control before his detention once the plane landed.
The unnamed Brit allegedly resisted arrest and left three officers injured before being taken off the plane in handcuffs.
The Spanish Association of Civil Guards AEGC on Saturday revealed they had gone to hospital after the incident and said officers should be armed with tasers to deal with problem passengers.
The airline he was travelling with has not been identified.
Police sources told respected island newspaper La Voz de Lanzarote he had been “aggressive” throughout the flight and at one point had tried to open an emergency door.
They also said two off-duty officers travelling to Lanzarote for a holiday, thought to be have been British although there has not been any official confirmation of their nationalities, had intervened before the plane landed to overpower the problem passenger.
The injuries the officers suffered are not believed to be serious but has led to them having to take time off work to recover.
AEGC spokesman Jose Cobo said: “A very aggressive person, in that altered state of mind, is very dangerous because he doesn’t feel the blows, however many times you hit him with a baton, but the officers of course feel them.”
The organisation added in a statement: “The British tourist assaulted three police officers at Lanzarote Airport when they tried to remove him from a plane.
“They all had to go to hospital and are now off work. Our association feels officers should be given tasers to deal with situations like the one that occurred on Thursday when the violent attitude of a passenger requires a police presence.
“If one of them had been armed with a taser, none of them would probably have ended up injured and we would now be talking about a successful operation.”
The British tourist was due to appear in court late on Friday, although court officials could not be reached on Saturday morning to comment on the case.
