According to another passenger on board the aircraft and witness to the scene, the individual sat on a seat reserved for flight personnel while waiting to be able to use the toilet.
A United Airlines flight from the United States to Israel was forced to turn back several hours after takeoff because of a passenger sitting in a crew seat while waiting to use the lavatory, multiple reports foreign media including The Independent.
It was on board United Airlines flight 90, which left Newark International Airport for Tel Aviv on April 23, that an unruly passenger began to argue with the cabin crew. A dispute arose when the passenger sat on a seat exclusively reserved for flight attendants while the toilets were free.
‘Crew members told him that if he didn’t return to his seat, the plane would fly back to New York,’ a passenger told Israeli media Ynetadding that the passenger did not appear to pose a threat.
Other passengers on the flight reportedly only discovered they were returning to the United States from the flight maps on their screens. On images posted by a Twitter user, we can see a man taking his belongings, followed by a flight crew, and escorted out of the aircraft. He is then photographed and filmed at Newark airport chatting with other passengers.
Passengers redirected to another flight
“The guy who forced our plane back over the Atlantic continues to fight back. He claims all he did was raise his voice in frustration at the delayed flight (.. .) no remorse from him for delaying others’ travel,” the same passenger wrote on Twitter.
A United Airlines spokesperson told US media Business Insider that the flight had returned to Newark due to “disruptive passenger” behavior.
“The police intervened on board the plane and evacuated the passenger”, also specified this representative of the airline, adding that “a new flight was to take off” with the other passengers during the evening for Tel Aviv.
