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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
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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.

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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.

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Two RAF Typhoon jets were scrambled because of a 'disruptive passenger'. Pic:
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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.”

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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
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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”.

 Tax and Duty Free at Sydney International Airport. Pic: iStock
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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.”

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Zhenhao Zou: More than 20 new potential victims come forward after ‘prolific’ rapist jailed for assaulting 10 women

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Zhenhao Zou: More than 20 new potential victims come forward after 'prolific' rapist jailed for assaulting 10 women

Another 23 female potential victims have reported that they may have been raped by Zhenhao Zou – the Chinese PhD student detectives believe may be one of the country’s most prolific sex offenders.

The Metropolitan Police launched an international appeal after Zou, 28, was convicted of drugging and raping 10 women following a trial at the Inner London Crown Court last month.

Detectives have not confirmed whether the 23 people who have come forward add to their estimates that more than 50 other women worldwide may have been targeted by the University College London student.

Metropolitan Police commander Kevin Southworth said: “We have victims reaching out to us from different parts of the globe.

“At the moment, the primary places where we believe offending may have occurred at this time appears to be both in England, here in London, and over in China.”

Metropolitan Police commander Kevin Southworth
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Metropolitan Police commander Kevin Southworth

Zou lived in a student flat in Woburn Place, near Russell Square in central London, and later in a flat in the Uncle building in Churchyard Row in Elephant and Castle, south London.

Read more: How a student described as ‘smart and charming’ was unmasked as a prolific sexual predator

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He had also been a student at Queen’s University Belfast, where he studied mechanical engineering from 2017 until 2019. Police say they have not had any reports from Belfast but added they were “open-minded about that”.

“Given how active and prolific Zou appears to have been with his awful offending, there is every prospect that he could have offended anywhere in the world,” Mr Southworth said.

“We wouldn’t want anyone to write off the fact they may have been a victim of his behaviour simply by virtue of the fact that you are from a certain place.

“The bottom line is, if you think you may have been affected by Zhenhao Zou or someone you know may have been, please don’t hold back. Please make contact with us.”

***ONLY USE IF HE IS CONVICTED OF AT LEAST TWO RAPES***It is feared Zou may have carried out dozens more sex crimes. Pic: Met Police
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Pic: Met Police

Zou used hidden or handheld cameras to record his attacks, and kept the footage and often the women’s belongings as souvenirs.

He targeted young, Chinese women, inviting them to his flat for drinks or to study, before drugging and assaulting them.

Zou was convicted of 11 counts of rape, with two of the offences relating to one victim, as well as three counts of voyeurism, 10 counts of possession of an extreme pornographic image, one count of false imprisonment and three counts of possession of a controlled drug with intent to commit a sexual offence, namely butanediol.

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Moment police arrest rapist student

Mr Southworth said: “Of those 10 victims, several were not identified so as we could be sure exactly where in the world they were, but their cases, nevertheless, were sufficient to see convictions at court.

“There were also, at the time, 50 videos that were identified of further potential female victims of Zhenhao Zou’s awful crimes.

“We are still working to identify all of those women in those videos.

“We have now, thankfully, had 23 victim survivors come forward through the appeal that we’ve conducted, some of whom may be identical with some of the females that we saw in those videos, some of whom may even turn out to be from the original indicted cases.”

Mr Southworth added: “Ultimately, now it’s the investigation team’s job to professionally pick our way through those individual pieces of evidence, those individual victims’ stories, to see if we can identify who may have been a victim, when and where, so then we can bring Zou to justice for the full extent of his crimes.”

Mr Southworth said more resources will be put into the investigation, and that detectives are looking to understand “what may have happened without wishing to revisit the trauma, but in a way that enables [the potential victims] to give evidence in the best possible way.”

The Metropolitan Police is appealing to anyone who thinks they may have been targeted by Zou to contact the force either by emailing survivors@met.police.uk, or via the major incident public portal on the force’s website.

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Girl, 11, who went missing after entering River Thames named

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Girl, 11, who went missing after entering River Thames named

An 11-year-old girl who went missing after entering the River Thames has been named as Kaliyah Coa.

An “extensive search” has been carried out after the incident in east London at around 1.30pm on Monday.

Police said the child had been playing during a school inset day and entered the water near Barge House Causeway, North Woolwich.

A recovery mission is now said to be under way to find Kaliyah along the Thames, with the Metropolitan Police carrying out an extensive examination of the area.

Location of Barge House Causeway, North Woolwich, where 11-year-old girl Kaliyah Coa went into the River Thames on 31/03
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Barge House Causeway is a concrete slope in North Woolwich leading into the Thames

Chief Superintendent Dan Card thanked members of the public and emergency teams who responded to “carry out a large-scale search during a highly pressurised and distressing time”.

He also confirmed drone technology and boats were being used to “conduct a thorough search over a wide area”.

He added: “Our specialist officers are supporting Kaliyah’s family through this deeply upsetting time and our thoughts go out to all those impacted by what has happened.”

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“Equally we appreciate this has affected the wider community who have been extremely supportive. You will see extra officers in the area during the coming days.”

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On Monday, Kerry Benadjaoud, a 62-year-old resident from the area, said she heard of the incident from her next-door neighbour, who “was outside doing her garden and there was two little kids running, and they said ‘my friend’s in the water'”.

When she arrived at the scene with a life ring, a man told her he had called the police, “but he said at the time he could see her hands going down”.

Barge House Causeway is a concrete slope that goes directly into the River Thames and is used to transport boats.

Residents pointed out that it appeared to be covered in moss and was slippery.

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Planning reforms to ‘rewire the system’ and get Britain building – all while protecting wildlife

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Planning reforms to 'rewire the system' and get Britain building - all while protecting wildlife

Major developers will only deal with one regulator under planning reforms which ministers say will “rewire the system” to get Britain building – all while protecting the environment. 

A review by former Labour adviser Dan Corry into Britain’s sluggish system of green regulation has concluded that existing environmental regulators should remain in place, while rejecting a “bonfire of regulations”.

But Mr Corry suggested there might be circumstances in which the government look at changing the wildlife and habit rules inherited from the EU, which protect individual species.

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These lie at the centre of the controversy of a £120m bat tunnel – the shed in Aylesbury which protects a rare breed from future high speed trains.

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The government has now explicitly ruled out any such change in this parliament.

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Campaigners have questioned whether the changes go far enough and will make a major difference to the rate and scale of building in the UK.

Speaking to Sky News, Environment Secretary Steve Reed insisted that accepting nine of the recommendations from the Corry review would amount to wholesale reform.

The minister said: “We can get a win-win for economic growth and for nature. And that is why we are moving ahead with proposals such as appointing a lead regulator for major developments so that the developers don’t have to navigate the architecture of multiple regulators.

“They just work for a single regulator who manages all the others on their behalf. Simplifying the online planning portal.

“These are huge changes that will save developers billions of pounds and speed up decisions doing damage to the environment.”

Mr Reed insisted that there would be “no more bat tunnels” built, even though the Corry review suggests that more work needs to be done to look again at the relevant guidance.

It says: “Rapidly reviewing the existing catalogue of compliance guidance, including on protecting bats, will identify opportunities to remove duplication, ambiguity or inconsistency.

“Natural England has already agreed to review and update their advice to Local Planning Authorities on bats to ensure there is clear, proportionate and accessible advice available.”

The review will mean:

• Appointing one lead regulator for every major infrastructure project, like Heathrow expansion

• A review on how nature rules are implemented – but not the rules themselves

• Insisting regulators focus more on government priorities, particularly growth

Economist and former charity leader Mr Corry, who led the review, said it shows that “simply scrapping regulations isn’t the answer”.

“Instead we need modern, streamlined regulation that is easier for everyone to use. While short-term trade-offs may be needed, these reforms will ultimately deliver a win-win for both nature and economic growth in the longer run.”

However, Sam Richards from Britain Remade, a thinktank trying to get Britain growing, said that while the steps are welcome, the number of regulators that report to the environment department would remain the same before and after the review. He questioned whether this would have the impact ministers claimed.

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