A man onboard Etihad flight EY460 had to be restrained after he reportedly attacked a flight attendant 7 hours into his flight from Abu Dhabi to Melbourne because he was told that he couldn’t smoke on the flight. As reported by Brisbane Times,
Man Attacks Flight Attendant On Etihad Airways
“A spokesman for Etihad Airways said the incident began when the man was told by air crew that he could not smoke during the flight.
“There was a lot of screaming, shouting and it was terrifying. There were about six or seven men who held him down and then the crew supplied cable ties to tie him to a seat in the last row,” said a Melbourne woman returning from holidays in England.”
Bottom Line
It seems a little strange to me that this man, 1.) didn’t know that you aren’t allowed to smoke on airplanes anymore (really?) and 2.) didn’t bring something with him to help his cravings to smoke, like nicotine replacement gum (since he is obviously very addicted to nicotine and might need some on such a long flight.) It also seems to me that maybe he might also be a little bit off-balanced in addition to the nicotine withdrawal.
“The crew supplied cable ties to tie him to a seat,” seems like the crew should also carry some nicotine replacement gum or patches in their handy emergency kits in addition to these cable ties. This was definitely pretty extreme but, I’m sure this happens often on long flights (to some degree.) Passengers who smoke 2 packs a day likely are fiending for some nicotine while flying and must get irritable. I would think that most bring something to help them in their carry-on bag and don’t attack flight attendants, but maybe not. What do you think?
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The Weekly Flyer writes about travel from a business traveler perspective. He travels the world every week accumulating points and miles along the way. Feel free to reach me at theweeklyflyer@gmail.com
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Hmm, that’s actually an interesting idea for a medical kit. I realize they can’t carry everything, but this sort of thing must happen fairly often. I guess there might be a liability issue with being able to give nicotine gum out?
it is interesting how you are suggesting that the “crew should also carry nicotine replacement”. I wonder if you ever thought the same about US airline crew members. Just because this is Etihad it doesn’t mean they have to do MORE to satisfy people like you! Saddening! 🙁
Airlines are no pharmacies , they do not dispense MEDs , they have medical kits to help assist with emergencies mid air .
If you smoke and you think you cant tolerate a long flight with no nicotine you should seek assistance prior to your flight , this applies to passengers who are addicted to illegal substances ,
Crew did the right action to ensure the remaining 300+ pax continue peacefully .