Passengers on a domestic flight have taken charge of a violent passenger in dramatic fashion, tacking him to the plane floor and strapping his limbs with duct tape.

The incident aboard an American Airlines flight from Milwaukee to Dallas last week has sparked concerns about the alarming surge in bad plane passenger behaviour.

The American Airlines drama began when the man apparently tried to open the emergency door midflight. He told cabin crew he needed “to exit the aircraft now”.

“He was bound and determined, he wanted off that plane,” said Doug McCright, one of the passengers who helped restrain the man.

“I was bound and determined, he wasn’t getting off that plane.”

McCright told CNN he and two others rushed to tackle their fellow passenger after he pushed past a 79-year-old flight attendant.

The trio helped the attendant subdue the man, securing his legs and wrists with duct tape.

After the plane landed, the attendant was taken to hospital with wrist and neck injuries. The troublesome passenger was also taken for a mental health evaluation.

“American Airlines flight 1915 with service from Milwaukee to Dallas-Fort Worth was met by law enforcement upon arrival at DFW due to a disruptive customer,” an airline spokesperson said.

“The safety and security of our customers and team members is our top priority and we thank our team members and customers for managing a difficult situation.

The US is not alone in a steady rise in abuse of airline staff and unruly behaviour. It’s a pattern also seen on flights in Australia.

Gui Lohmann, a researcher at RMIT University’s STEM College, said there were several factors behind the worrying surge.

“What we have seen after the pandemic is an increase in the bio-security aspect, social distancing and then the confinement environment brings a lot of people close together,” he said.

“There’s also a well-documented rise in mental health issues in society across the board, and this again can be easily triggered by a number of factors in this environment.”

Flying is already stressful for many people, without other people causing a scene. Photo: AAP

Challenging conditions

Throughout 2022, there was one report of unruly behaviour for every 568 flights in Australia.

The most commonly reported issues were non-compliance with instructions from cabin crew, verbal abuse and intoxication.

Lohmann said the widespread availability of alcohol at all hours at airports was also a contributing factor.

“It isn’t rare to see people drinking at 8am … and there are a lot of grey areas that are not regulated, with profit put ahead,” he said.

“There’s a lot of other issues going on and alcohol isn’t the only contributor, but it’s something that needs to be looked at carefully.”

Earlier this year, a Western Australian court fined a man $9000 and ordered him to pay $8000 in fuel after his behaviour caused a pilot to dump fuel and return to flight to Perth airport.

Australian passengers can be fined up to $11,000 for unruly behaviour while threatening the safety of the crew or other passengers can result in two years imprisonment.

Lohmann said crew, airport staff and pilots were already under immense stress each day.

“It’s very difficult for an airline to change this massive tide of behaviour, people don’t care about the safety announcement anymore with everybody on their phones,” he said.

“If an emergency does happen, would people even realise because they are so disconnected?”

Respect

Australia’s airlines banded together in 2021 to launch an awareness campaign to promote respect towards aviation workers after hundreds of incidents of abuse were reported after Australia’s international borders reopened.

Lohmann said passenger stress levels could also rise at airports, requiring empathy from staff and other travellers.

“You may see cases where passengers with special needs feel frustrations that they cannot have their wheelchair or equipment well-placed on planes,” he said.

“Regulations too can cause issues for a lot of people, not just those who are misbehaving but those are flying well too.”

Qantas, Jetstar, Virgin and Rex all signed a Code of Practice on Passenger Behaviour in 2021. It ensures that customers who engage in offensive or disruptive behaviour aren’t allowed to board, they are held accountable for offensive or disruptive behaviour and extra training for handling issues.