Mass brawls, drunken threats and passengers stripping off: ‘Air rage’ incidents surge in the UK
Mass brawls, sexual assaults, physical violence, drunken threats, verbal abuse, passengers stripping off: all examples of the kind of disruptive behaviour experienced by cabin crew in recent years.
New figures exclusively shared with Sky News show 1,028 cases were reported by UK airlines in 2022 – nearly triple the number reported in 2019. Next week, in a bid to reduce those numbers, MPs will be considering a new law that could see offenders banned from all British carriers.
Many incidents of so-called “air rage” have been documented by shocked fellow travellers on social media.
Seven people needed to subdue one man. Pic: Deadline News
One example from August last year shows seven people having to restrain a heavily intoxicated man filmed shouting and swearing at fellow passengers on a flight from Luton to Lithuania.
In another, last May, footage from a plane which had just landed in Crete from Gatwick shows passengers gasping in horror as a drunken fight broke out in the aisle – and one of the pilots was seemingly punched trying to break up the melee.
One man was pictured stripping to his boxers. Pic: SWNS
During a flight from Manchester to Turkey in July 2022, a man was filmed stripping down to his underwear and drunkenly shouting “people are scared of me, I wonder why”.
In 2019, two RAF jets were even scrambled to escort a plane back to Stansted after a woman assaulted cabin crew, threatened fellow passengers and attempted to open the aircraft door mid-flight.
Fighter jets were used to escort a plane to Stansted in 2019
Cabin crew are trained to deal with these cases – but they can take a heavy toll.
“You’re up there at 38,000ft with 300 passengers and 16 crew, and you have to manage and deal with the situation on your own,” one former air steward said. “It can leave a very long-lasting impact. We’re all human at the end of the day.”
Ben (not his real name) recently left his job after 20 years working as cabin crew.
He is speaking to us on condition of anonymity because industry contracts typically restrict staff from speaking to the media.
Ben had to restrain drunken, aggressive passengers in handcuffs on two separate occasions. The first involved a man who sexually assaulted a woman – and then attempted to hide in a galley freezer cabinet.
“The passenger was intoxicated and had taken some sort of medication about three hours into the flight,” Ben said. “He was increasingly erratic. We tried to calm him down but the situation became aggressive and uncontrollable.
“A decision that we don’t take lightly was made to restrain him. We had to physically grab his arms and put the cuffs on. He was being very vocal, shouting and swearing, which was very offensive.”
Ben has since left the industry
One of Ben’s colleagues later received counselling due to the distress caused by the incident.
On another flight, this time to Nigeria, passengers complained about a man who had been drinking excessively.
“He was very, very drunk. We later found out he had been drinking from his own bottle as well. We were able to cuff him, but he was moving around a lot, swearing, kicking and stamping in his seat.”
Ben believes more should be done to protect passengers and crew from these incidents.
“I’d like to see the law tightened, and possibly a national register shared amongst all the airlines, so they can be made aware of what a passenger has done before. People just think they can get away with it. They cause so much stress and heartache.”
UK airlines have a mandatory duty to report cases involving intoxicated, violent or unruly passengers to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) for safety reasons.
In 2019, 373 incidents were reported, a figure consistent with the numbers over the previous few years. But while those obviously fell during COVID, last year there were 1,028 cases – triple the pre-pandemic figure.
It’s thought the increase is largely down to better reporting from one specific airline, and the impact of mask requirements.
Gareth Johnson, the MP for Dartford
But the Conservative MP for Dartford, Gareth Johnson, believes the law needs to change to deal with the increasing numbers. He’s introducing a 10 Minute Rule Bill on the issue on 24 May.
“This bill aims to ensure that violent people who cause mayhem on aeroplanes are actually banned from flying for a specific period of time by a court,” Mr Johnson said.
“The difficulty that we have currently is that someone can be violent on a particular operator’s aeroplane and then that operator cannot pass that information on to another operator. So that person can just go and fly with a different operator.
“At the moment violence is very rare, but if you introduce this legislation, this will make it even less likely to happen. It is right that people can be banned from driving, they can be banned from being a company director and they can be banned from football matches. The same should apply for people who behave violently on planes. This power exists in other countries and should be available here too.”
In 2018, the government considered plans to restrict the sale of alcohol at UK airports in a bid to crack down on the problem. They concluded the resulting consultation did not generate enough evidence that doing so would be a “proportionate way to address the issue of drunk and disruptive passenger behaviour … but we do think that other action is needed”.
The government considered banning alcohol in airports. Pic: iStock
Currently, drunken passengers can face fines of up to £5,000 and two years’ imprisonment. Airlines can also attempt to recoup some of the costs of diverting a plane to a different airport, typically ranging from £10,000 to £80,000.
But that is often impossible. Paul Charles, a former director at Virgin Atlantic, said the problem is hugely expensive for airlines.
“The costs run into millions across the airline industry from disruptive passengers. They’re facing potentially higher fuel bills by having to divert an aircraft to a different airport. They’re facing the costs potentially of paying out all passengers on board because of a delay. That’s longer than three hours to that particular flight and its arrival time.
“It also creates a knock-on impact for the rest of the day’s schedule for an airline. So let’s say there’s disruption in the morning which leads to a flight delay of three or four hours, potentially. That then knocks on to other flights where that aircraft should be flying.
“And of course, that then affects thousands of other passengers who are relying on that aircraft to be on time. The costs are widespread because they’re not just about the costs on board an aircraft where that passenger is being disruptive, but other aircraft and airports too.”
A spokesperson from the Department for Transport said: “All passengers and crew have the right to feel safe when travelling by air. There is already robust legislation and powers to deal with disruptive passengers, including bans, fines and removal from flights.”
Anna Bowles, head of consumer at the CAA, added: “Passengers who are rude or aggressive can be highly disruptive and distressing for cabin crew and fellow travellers. This type of behaviour is completely unacceptable and can pose a risk to aircraft safety.
“The aviation industry undertakes a range of measures to tackle this issue and passengers could face criminal charges with severe penalties, even prison, for incidents involving aggressive behaviour.”
The mistaken release of an asylum seeker who was jailed for sexual offences has prompted widespread condemnation – and an extensive police operation.
Hadush Gerberslasie Kebatu, 38, had assaulted a 14-year-old girl and a woman in Epping, about a week after he had crossed the Channel and arrived in the UK by boat.
Last night, the teenager’s father was visibly upset as he turned up at HMP Chelmsford – asking for answers on how Kebatu was freed just one month into a 12-month sentence.
He did not want to speak on camera – but told Sky correspondent Mollie Malone that he was “frustrated” at the thought of the Ethiopian national being back on the streets.
“The justice system has let us down,” he said.
Footage has emerged that appears to show Kebatu in Chelmsford town centre following his release – dressed in prison clothes and clutching his belongings in a see-through bag.
He then headed to the railway station and boarded a train bound for London’s Liverpool Street, which departed at 12.41pm yesterday.
Follow latest developments on manhunt
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Accidental release ‘damaging’ for government
‘You couldn’t make it up’
Kebatu’s case had a high profile and led to weeks of protests outside the Bell Hotel in Epping, where he was staying alongside other asylum seekers.
When he was sentenced last month, Judge Christopher Williams warned he posed a “significant risk of reoffending”.
The Liberal Democrat MP for Chelmsford, Marie Goldman, told Sky presenter Barbara Serra she was “appalled, frustrated and angry about how this could possibly happen in the first place”.
She said it is clear something went “fundamentally wrong” at HMP Chelmsford – and her constituents are “fed up” with systems not working and underinvestment.
“It just destroys trust at a time when emotions are riding high. We’ve seen protests over the past few weeks and months, and there’s a lot of fear out there,” Ms Goldman added.
“It is so easy to lose trust and really hard to gain it – we need the government to get a grip on this.”
Protests were held at The Bell Hotel for several weeks
Shadow home secretary Chris Philp described Kebatu as a “dangerous illegal immigrant” – and said his premature release shows “staggering incompetence”.
He told Sky News: “We also need an urgent apology from Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood and Justice Secretary David Lammy who have presided over this fiasco.”
Mr Lammy, who also serves as deputy prime minister, has said he is “appalled” and “livid on behalf of the public that Kebatu is at large”.
He confirmed a full investigation is being launched, adding: “He should be deported back to Ethiopia after the sexual assaults that he’s committed.”
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Manhunt continues for Kebatu
Extensive policing operation under way
Multiple forces are now involved in the manhunt for Kebatu – including Essex Police, the British Transport Police and the Metropolitan Police in London.
Policing commentator Graham Wettone told Sky presenter Gillian Joseph that detectives will be carefully piecing together his movements after walking free from HMP Chelmsford.
“All these forces will now be looking at the CCTV from the train itself – trying to locate him on the train and trying to identify at which stop he went off at, and where he went from that station,” he explained.
Mr Wettone said information from Essex Police’s initial investigation – including the contacts, friends and associates he had at the Bell Hotel – will also be a factor.
Questions will also be asked of the prison authorities: “Has he had any visits or phone calls? Has he got any friends or family in the country?”
He added that additional officers will have been allocated to the manhunt: “The Met will have some significant resources looking for him – maybe the Territorial Support Group or additional borough-based officers in and around Liverpool Street first of all.”
The British Transport Police could also be involved in further inquiries if Kebatu ended up travelling on the Underground.
“It really depends on where that thread goes – if they can locate where he got off, and then where he went to,” Mr Wettone said.
“This work is very, very fast-paced – there are detectives and intelligence officers working in the background, chasing up on leads and updating the teams on the ground.”
Experts are warning that without “fast changes” the UK could run out of drinking water in the future.
The first seven months of 2025 were the driest since 1976, with reservoirs across England only 56.1% full on average, according to the Environment Agency.
“I think that we do need to worry about the fact that there is this possibility we could run out,” Hannah Cloke, professor of hydrology from Reading University, told Sky News.
“It’s only if we start thinking like that, that we’re going to start conserving our water, otherwise we just take it completely for granted.
“It is all of our fault, we have not been paying attention to what’s going on… we need some very fast changes to the way that we are using water and the way that we’re storing water in order to stop this being a problem in the future, because our summers are only going to get hotter.”
By 2050, the government says that England could face a shortfall of five billion litres of water every day.
‘Growing pressure’ on water system
A Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs spokesperson said: “This government recognises the growing pressure on our water system and is taking decisive action.
“We’re delivering over £104bn of private investment to fix leaking pipes, build nine new reservoirs and secure our water supply for the future.”
Latest figures suggest that around 2,690 megalitres of water is lost every day in England through leaks – the equivalent of 1,076 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
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‘We have invested an extra £10m’
“Leaks are a really important issue for us. We have invested an extra £10m just to deal with the weather that we’ve seen this summer,” said Dr Geoff Darch, head of strategic asset planning for Anglian Water.
Anglian Water is also hoping to build two new reservoirs in the East of England.
“We don’t want to stop people using water, it is absolutely essential for everything that we need it to do,” Dr Darch said.
“But I think we’ve got to a point now where we have to realise that water is a precious resource, it’s something that we all have to look after so that we have it for future generations and for the environment and with climate change and drought, we will need more reservoirs.”
The government claims it is fast-tracking new reservoirs to address the problem
Concerns about ‘whole system starting to collapse’
In August, the UK received just 62% of its average rainfall, according to the Met Office, which is leading a group of residents to monitor their water stocks closely.
“We collect all our own water from the rain, and so if we don’t have the rain that’s a significant issue,” explained Simon Tilly, director of the Hockerton eco housing project in Nottinghamshire.
He told Sky News they were working together to use less water.
“I suppose I’m most concerned about the whole system starting to collapse. There’s potential for longer droughts and us having a lot of water stress, there’s potential for a lot of floods when the drought finishes… and just generally that system going into random patterns where we’re getting more droughts and more floods,” he added.
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