Air rage woman jailed in Canada
MANCHESTER TO MEXICO FLIGHT FORCED TO DIVERT AFTER 34-YEAR-OLD FROM BLACKLEY CAUSED DISTURBANCE ON BOARD
A PASSENGER whose violent outburst on a plane from Manchester forced pilots to divert has been jailed for 20 days...in Canada.
Holidaymakers intervened and helped restrain Bridget Hanley after she went for a fellow traveller and TUI crew member mid-air on the flight to Cancun, Mexico.
Hanley faced charges of ‘disturbing the peace, mischief, and jeopardising the safety of an aircraft,’ following the incident on Sunday.
The plane made an emergency landing in Quebec City where the 34-yearold, from north Manchester, was arrested by local police.
She appeared in court the next morning where she was formally charged and was handed a 20-day sentence after pleading guilty.
Hanley, of Heaton Park Road in Blackley, will serve the time in a provincial detention facility in the Québec City region.
A spokesman for Sûreté du Québec, the predominantly French-speaking province’s police department, formally named Ms Hanley and confirmed the outcome of the court hearing to the M.E.N.
They said that the airline also intends to file a civil lawsuit against her.
It’s understood passengers – including a former rugby player and a police officer – helped to detain Hanley following the outburst.
They sat with her until the flight landed in Quebec, where she was handed over to Sûreté du Québec.
A statement from the force read: “Our major Crimes Division is investigating a case whereby the passenger of an international flight was causing a disturbance on board, forcing the pilot to land in Quebec City.
“The 34-year-old woman was arrested and will appear in Québec Superior court this morning. She may be facing charges of disturbing the peace, mischief and jeopardising the safety of an aircraft.
“During the flight this individual was under the influence of alcohol and involved in an altercation with another passenger as well as a flight-crew member. However no one was injured during this incident.”
A spokesman for TUI stressed that incidents like this on board are extremely rare and confirmed the flight arrived safely in Cancun later that day.
They added: “The safety of customers and crew is our priority at all times and we operate a zero tolerance policy on any behaviour of this kind.”