- Concerned passengers could be heard pleading with the men to calm down as they flew into a mid-air fistfight.
- The men were initially seen exchanging slaps before one of the attackers launched a volley of punches to the other man’s jaw.
- Both men were reportedly detained upon arrival in Hawaii, and Southwest Airlines praised the calm response of staff and passengers.
Shocking footage captured the moment two men got into an ugly mid-air fistfight on a Southwest Airlines flight to Hawaii.
Passengers could be heard pleading with the men to calm down, before another pilot pulled one out of the fight.
The flight, which departed from Oakland, California, was in the air over the Pacific Ocean when the standoff began, but completed its journey and avoided an emergency landing.
Both men were reportedly detained after landing in Hawaii.
Shocking footage captured the moment two men got into a mid-air fight on a Southwest Airlines flight to Hawaii.
It is unclear what sparked the fight, as the footage begins with one of the men lightly slapping the other in the face.
The slap was quickly met with a flurry of punches, several of which landed squarely on the other man’s face.
After landing a flurry of blows to the first man’s jaw, the enraged passenger pauses for a moment as others grab his arms and urge him to stop.
As passengers gradually separate, one attacker can be heard telling the other to “come here”, before a worried-looking passenger tells him “it’s not worth it”.
“Take it easy, take it easy,” another passenger could be heard saying from the back of the plane.
The hostile situation eventually calmed down when a man in a blue hoodie restrained the man and ordered him to “just stop,” while moving him to the back of the plane.
The men were initially seen exchanging slaps before one of the attackers launched a volley of punches to the other man’s jaw.
The hostile situation eventually calmed down when a man in a blue hoodie restrained the man and ordered him to “just stop,” while moving him to the back of the plane.
Despite mid-flight altercations that often resulted in emergency landings, the pilot decided to continue landing on Kauai, where both men were reportedly detained.
Witnesses told Hawaii News Now that the fight broke out about an hour after the flight took off from California.
‘I heard screams, screams and punches. I turned around and saw one man bleeding and then the other being separated,” passenger Jim Wieder told the outlet.
“Frankly, I was a little nervous because we’re at 35,000 feet and you’ve got two guys hitting each other, which doesn’t make any sense.”
Despite mid-flight altercations that often resulted in emergency landings, the pilot decided to continue landing on Kauai.
Both men were detained upon arrival, although it is unclear if charges were filed.
Southwest Airlines said in a statement: “We commend our crew and customers for their professionalism in alleviating this situation.”
“The flight landed safely at its intended destination and was met by local authorities upon arrival.”