Two passengers came to blows about an hour after take-off on a Hawaii-bound flight and forced other travelers and crew members to break up the mid-air fight, the distressing video showed.
The chaos broke out on Southwest Airlines Flight 1288 from Oakland to Lihue Airport on the island of Kauai on Monday, airline officials told Hawaii News Now.
“I heard yelling, screaming and punches. I turned around and saw one man bleeding and then the other man being separated,” passenger Jim Wieder told the outlet.
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In the video of the mid-air exchange, one man, dressed in a gray hoodie and baseball hat, is seen inching closer toward the other man, donning a gray pullover, before the confrontation turns ugly.
The man in the baseball hat is slapped in the arm by the man in the pullover as he approaches him from the aisle, while Southwest Airlines crew members and fellow passengers are already physically separating them.
The man in the baseball cap then unleashes a series of punches, landing about seven in the other passenger’s face before fellow male travelers pull him away.
Though restrained, he continued to shout as the men held him back, attempting desperately to calm him down.
The man is seen leaping toward the other passenger and begins to throw punches, landing at least seven.
“Frankly, I was a little nervous because we’re 35,000 feet and you’ve got two guys swinging at each other, which makes no sense whatsoever,” Wieder said.
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The fight happened between two male passengers about an hour into the flight, another witness shared.
It is unclear what ignited the fight between the two passengers.
The plane, however, did not turn around and continued to fly to Kauai, one witness told the outlet.
A Southwest Airlines crew member is seen telling the man to back away after he lands a series of punches on the other passenger.
“We commend our Crew and Customers for their professionalism in diffusing this situation,” a Southwest official said in a statement to Hawaii News Now.
“The flight landed safely at its scheduled destination, and local authorities met the flight upon arrival.”
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Both men were detained after the flight landed.
It’s unknown if any charges have been pressed against either man.
“Our department has zero tolerance for violent or unruly behavior aboard an aircraft. If you act out on an airplane, you can face criminal prosecution and fines up to $37,000,″ the US Department of Transportation posted on X.
One of the passengers is seen trying to calm the man down after he was pulled away from the other man.
The scuffle between the men shocked some Hawaii-based flight attendants who spoke with Hawaii News Now.
“I’ve been flying 45 years and no it was not like this,” a flight attendant told the outlet. “Probably the worst thing that happened a couple years ago was a passenger taking a couple peanuts.”
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A non-stop flight from Oakland International Airport to Lihue Airport is about five and a half hours.
Both men were detained after the flight landed, but it’s unknown if either man has been charged. AP
The in-air melee is just the newest startling altercations to happen in the skies.
Only two weeks ago, a JetBlue passenger had to be restrained by four fellow travelers after becoming abusive toward the cabin crew.
The flight had taken off from London Gatwick Airport and was heading to New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport when the aggressive man was caught on video struggling against four other men who were trying to hold him still in the darkened cabin aisle.
The passenger was allegedly drunk when he began to become unruly mid-air.
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Similarly, an American Airlines flight last month had to be diverted after a passenger allegedly punched a flight attendant who asked him to stop kicking a fellow flyer’s seat.
A fellow passenger on that flight said the man was spitting at people, adding that she saw him banging his head against the window, and he worried the crew enough that the pilot declared a level two threat at about 1:50 p.m. and diverted to Rick Husband Amarillo International Airport.
Keith Edward Fagiana, of Las Vegas, was met by law enforcement and charged with interference with a flight crew upon arrival.
UH kicker Kansei Matsuzawa reacted after making a game-winning field goal to beat the Stanford Cardinal at Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex in the Warriors’ opener on Aug. 23.
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Kicker Kansei Matsuzawa today became the University of Hawaii football program’s first consensus All-American.
Matsuzawa, 26, earned the distinction after being selected today to the American Football Coaches Association’s All-America first team.
The NCAA recognizes five All-America teams. A “consensus” All-American is selected to three of those organizations’ first teams. Matsuzawa previously was named to the All-America first teams by the Walter Camp Foundation and the Associated Press. The Sporting News and the Football Writers Association of America will announce their All-America teams this week.
“This is a result of my teammates and coaches,” Matsuzawa said, noting without them “I couldn’t have done this. I appreciate my family, and the state of Hawaii and Japan.”
Matsuzawa is a self-taught kicker from Chiba, Japan. The school-promoted “Tokyo Toe” converted his first 25 field-goal attempts this season to tie an FBS record for best start. The streak ended when he was wide right on a 30-yard attempt in the fourth quarter of the regular-season finale against Wyoming.
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Last week, UH special teams coordinator Thomas Sheffield declared Matsuzawa as “the best kicker in the country. And I’ll stand on the tallest mountain and scream it from the tallest mountain until the cows come home.”
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The Rainbow Warriors will play Cal in the Dec. 24 Sheraton Hawaii Bowl at the Ching Complex.
HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – A Hawaii-based company was in the national spotlight this weekend for its sweet service.
The Maui Cookie Lady was featured on Good Morning America as part of a segment highlighting the best holiday cookies to order online.
The Makawao-based bakery made the list, curated by Bon Appétit and Epicurious editor-in-chief Jamila Robinson, alongside other standout cookie companies from across the country that can deliver delicious treats straight to your doorstep.
The Maui Cookie Lady was founded by Mitzi Toro in 2012 as a thank you to Maui nurses who cared for Toro’s ill father.
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Known for colossal-sized cookies in imaginative flavors, the company quickly became a favorite, with Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson and Ludacris among its many fans.
“I’m still taking it in,” said Toro. “I’m proud of our team and grateful for the support that has carried us from our island kitchen to a national audience. I hope this moment reminds people how special our Maui community truly is.”
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