A Air A New Zealand passenger traveling on a crowded plane has been arrested after he allegedly assaulted a crew member, forcing the international flight to be diverted.
Flight NZ176 from Perth to Auckland was forced to land in Melbourne approximately three hours into the flight, at 1.40am on Wednesday.
Australian Federal Police officers boarded the plane shortly afterwards and removed the 23-year-old New Zealand man.
He was charged with one count of assault on crew affecting the performance of their duty and will appear at Broadmeadows Magistrates’ Court on Thursday.
Passengers waited 90 minutes on the tarmac before embarking on the second unplanned leg of their journey.
An Air New Zealand spokesperson said while the crew handled the incident well, it would have been a confrontation for passengers.
“Incidents like this are concerning for our customers and our people and we have zero tolerance for this type of behavior on our aircraft,” said spokesman David Morgan.
An Air New Zealand flight from Perth to Auckland was forced to land at Melbourne Airport after a passenger allegedly assaulted a staff member on Wednesday morning (file image)
This comes after AFP learned of a bomb scare following another incident on Air New Zealand flight NZ-247 as it approached Sydney from Wellington at around 4.50pm on Saturday.
The flight was cleared to land and landed safely at 5:37 pm, only to encounter more than 30 emergency services teams on the runway, with a tactical operations unit, paramedics and firefighters called to the scene.
The A320 plane, carrying 154 employees and passengers, was isolated on a separate runway at the airport for about an hour before being transported to a terminal.
An AFP spokesperson said the incident did not pose any danger to the public but that “investigations continue.”
Incoming flights were reportedly initially placed in a holding pattern before landings resumed.
The passenger was escorted off the flight by the AFP shortly after landing and accused of assaulting the crew and affecting the performance of their duty (file image)
Aerial photographs of the airport showed New South Wales Fire and Rescue crews at the airport along with AFP officers.
“We are working with local authorities and following standard protocols established for these types of incidents,” Morgan said.
“The safety of all passengers and crew is our top priority.”