13 February 2024 , 10:46
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A Ryanair passenger was removed off a plane by police after becoming "loud and abusive".
The woman became disruptive minutes after take-off and, despite warnings from staff, it is said she continued to "abuse passengers" on the flight from Cork to Manchester.
The plane landed and other tourists were kept onboard for around half an hour while police ejected the woman. Other passengers on the flight said they believe the woman was "under the influence of something".
A spokesperson for Ryanair told CorkBeo: “The crew of this Cork to Manchester flight (11 Feb) requested police assistance after a passenger became disruptive inflight. Local police met the aircraft upon arrival at Manchester and removed this passenger from the aircraft before the rest of the passengers disembarked."
Passengers could hear a woman's voice being raised and what appeared to be a loud argument break out moments after take-off. One passenger said: "The captain came over the intercom and asked the woman to sit down and stop abusing passengers and staff. We got to Manchester, we had to wait for around 25 minutes, the police arrived and they were taking her off, she was still screaming at the air hostess."
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Another passenger said the Ryanair crew were calm and professional, adding: "She was very loud, she could have been under the influence of something."
A police spokesperson said: "At around 9:30am on Sunday 11 February 2024, officers were called to reports of a woman being drunk and disorderly onboard an aircraft flying from Cork, Ireland to Manchester Airport.
"Upon the plane returning to Manchester, a 51-year-old woman was arrested and was taken into custody for further questioning. Madeline Higgins of no fixed abode was charged with entering an aircraft when drunk/being drunk inside an aircraft.
"She is next due to appear at Stockport Magistrates Court on Monday 20 May 2024."
In recent years, the penalties for being disruptive on a commercial passenger flight have become severe. In the UK, a person charged and convicted of endangering the safety of an aircraft can face up to five years in prison.
Disruptive passengers who cause an airplane to be diverted may also be asked to reimburse the airline with the cost of the diversion. Diversion costs typically range from £10,000 - £80,000 depending on the distance travelled.
In 2018, a middle-aged British couple who came to blows during a row aboard a Jet Blue flight from London to Gran Canaria - forcing the captain to divert to Faro in Portugal - were ordered to pay the airline almost €3,500 for the costs incurred.