A drunk airline passenger was fined €8,000 after he punched a fellow passenger and then resisted cabin crew during a flight from Paris to Malta.
The 23-year-old man caused commotion on board KM Malta Airlines flight 479 from Charles de Gaulle airport to Malta on Friday morning.
The aggressor, who was under the influence of alcohol, was charged with potentially endangering the safety of passengers through his actions. He was also charged with injuring a fellow passenger, and had to be restrained in his seat. He was arrested as soon as the aircraft landed in Malta.
His defence lawyer said the man was under the influence of alcohol.
Magistrate Kevan Azzopardi gave him a two-year suspended sentence and fined him €8,000.
A spokesperson for KM Malta Airlines stressed that the safety and security of passengers and crew is a top priority.
"The fact that some people misbehave on aircraft to the extent that they jeopardise the safety and security of passengers and crew alike is unacceptable. We have zero tolerance for any form of aggression on board or on the ground. KM Malta Airlines is committed to press charges against all unruly passengers."
Friday's incident comes less than a month after a golfer and her friend went on a drunken rampage after being denied boarding of a flight back home from Malta.
And in April, a man admitted in court to drunkenly urinating on the floor of a KM Malta Airlines plane after ignoring cabin crew’s orders to wait until it was safe to use the bathroom.
Airlines, governments and passengers have expressed concern at the increasing frequency and severity of unruly and disruptive passenger incidents onboard aircraft.
Latest IATA figures show an increase in the rate of reported unruly passenger incidents.
Based on over 24,500 incident reports from over 50 operators around the world, there was one incident for every 480 flights in 2023 in comparison to one incident for every 568 flights in 2022.
Non-compliance with crew instruction was the most frequent problem, but the number of reports mentioning verbal and physically abusive behaviours also increased in 2023.