Alaska Airlines flight attendant caught on video punching man who attacked female passenger (WATCH)

synopsis

An Alaska Airlines flight from California's Oakland, to Portland in Oregon, had to be canceled after a violent mid-air incident forced a flight attendant to physically intervene to protect a female passenger.

The altercation, which took place on February 2 and was captured on video, shows the flight attendant repeatedly striking a male passenger who had aggressively grabbed the woman's hair.

Alaska Airlines flight video viral

The video, widely shared on social media, depicts the attendant punching the man in the throat and torso to make him release his grip. The disruptive passenger was later arrested, and Alaska Airlines has permanently banned him from flying with the carrier.

According to several reports, the altercation occurred on Flight 221 when the man, seated behind the woman, suddenly yanked her hair. A voice in the video can be heard shouting, 'Let go of her hair!' as the flight attendant struggles to free her.
When verbal commands failed, the attendant resorted to hitting the man. The video also shows the attendant calling for 'another capable male' to help restrain the screaming passenger.

Witnesses reported that the man had been 'saying weird things and rocking back and forth' before the incident. After the plane returned to the gate at Oakland International Airport, law enforcement arrested the suspect, and the flight was subsequently canceled. Passengers were rebooked later that day.

Victim and airline on the incident

The woman involved in the incident described her ordeal, stating, 'My hair wasn’t in anyone’s way to provoke this.' She recalled the man's erratic behavior, noting he banged his head on his seat repeatedly before briefly losing and regaining consciousness. "He grabbed my hair close to the scalp. If I’d leaned forward, he could have pulled it out. I was terrified he’d punch me in the head, and I’m thankful for the flight attendant and other passengers who stepped in," she was quoted by travel outlet View from the Wing.

Alaska Airlines confirmed the incident and praised the crew for their swift action. "The passenger appeared to be experiencing a violent medical episode that escalated into an assault on both passengers and crew," the airline stated. “Our crew acted quickly to manage the situation and ensured the safety of all guests until law enforcement arrived.”

The airline announced the passenger has been permanently banned from Alaska Airlines and its regional carrier Horizon Air due to the severity of the assault, as reported by the New York Post.