A violent outburst aboard an Alaska Airlines flight forced a flight attendant to physically subdue a raging passenger who attacked a woman just before takeoff. The shocking altercation was caught on video and quickly went viral, showing just how dangerous air travel has become in the age of unchecked lunacy.
Flight Attendant Steps In as Passenger Attacks Woman
The chaos erupted aboard Flight 221 from Oakland to Portland on February 1, when a man suddenly grabbed the hair of a female passenger seated in front of him. As she screamed for help, a male flight attendant rushed in, ordering the attacker to release her immediately.
“Let go of her hair!” someone yelled, but the man refused.
When words failed, fists took over. The flight attendant began repeatedly punching the attacker in the throat and torso, forcing him to finally loosen his grip. Other passengers quickly pulled the shaken woman to safety while the man howled uncontrollably.
Alaska Airlines Flight 2221 incident Oakland, CA 2/1/2024 ~10:35 am pic.twitter.com/ND7g1YqUVz
— chad_bro_chill_17 (@walterizzle) February 1, 2025
Realizing the attacker was still a threat, the flight attendant pushed him back and called for “another capable male” to step up and help restrain him.
Plane Returns to Gate, Attacker Arrested
According to witnesses, the suspect had been acting bizarrely before the attack, rocking back and forth and making disturbing comments.
After the violent incident, the flight was forced to return to the gate, where police arrested the unruly passenger. Due to the disruption, Alaska Airlines canceled the flight entirely.
Alaska Airlines Bans Attacker for Life
The airline confirmed the incident in a statement, commending the flight attendant’s swift response while making it clear that this passenger would never fly with them again.
“He appeared to be experiencing a violent medical episode that involved an ongoing physical assault against other passengers and our crew,” the airline said.
“At this time, the guest in question has been banned from Alaska and Horizon due to the nature of the physical assault.”
