Man urinates, defecates on floor of Air India flight mid-air, held

The male passenger was secluded from others following a verbal warning from the crew after he urinated, defecated and spat in row 9 of the Air India aircraft mid-air.

New Delhi: A male passenger was arrested by Delhi police after he allegedly defecated and urinated on the floor of a Mumbai-Delhi Air India flight mid-air, police said on Monday. The incident took place onboard flight AIC 866 on June 24, police said.

According to the FIR, Ram Singh, a passenger on seat number 17F, defecated, urinated, and spat in row 9 of the aircraft. Upon observing the "misconduct", the cabin crew gave a verbal warning to the passenger and he was secluded from the others, it said. The pilot-in-command was also informed of the situation.

A message was sent to the company immediately seeking security on arrival to escort the passenger. The act left several of the passengers agitated, the FIR stated. On arrival, the head of Air India security attended and escorted the passenger to the local police station, it said. A case under sections 294 (obscene acts) and 510 (misconduct in public by a drunken person) of the Indian Penal Code was registered, it added.

In a short statement, Air India spokesperson said the matter has been notified to the DGCA and criminal action has been necessitated against the passenger for behaving in a "repulsive manner, causing discomfort to the co-passengers." The passenger was handed over to the security personnel upon landing in Delhi. A police complaint (FIR) was registered subsequently, as was the matter reported to the regulator. We are extending all cooperation to the ongoing investigation, the spokesperson added.

It is pertinent to note that the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has imposed a penalty of Rs 30 lakh on Air India for the November 26 drunk-urination incident on board New York to Delhi flight. The penalty was imposed for violation of DGCA's norms on handling unruly passengers onboard flights.

On November 26, 2022, a man, who was in an inebriated condition, allegedly urinated on a woman co-passenger onboard an Air India flight from New York to Delhi. Ten days later, another episode of a "drunk" male passenger allegedly "urinating" on a blanket of a female passenger was reported on a Paris-New Delhi Air India flight on December 6. (with Agency inputs)