A Turkish Airlines Airbus A330 diverted to Karachi due to disruptive passenger
On Saturday, December 3rd, a Turkish Airlines flight traveling from Turkey’s Istanbul Airport (IST) to Thailand’s Phuket International Airport (HKT) diverted to Pakistan’s Jinnah International Airport (KHI) to deplane a passenger who was allegedly misbehaving. A passenger began to misbehave with passengers and crew aboard the aircraft after departing IST. The captain made the decision to divert to KHI to deplane the passenger. After the passenger was taken into custody by local law enforcement, the flight continued to its intended destination.
Precautionary diversion
Turkish Airlines flight TK-172, flown on an Airbus A330 registered TC-JNL, diverted to KHI approximately three hours into the flight near the Iran, Pakistan border. Authorities have stated that the flight diversion was not an emergency but was a precautionary measure taken by the flight crew. Upon landing, the passenger was arrested and deported back to Turkey. Afterward, the flight continued to HKT, where it landed safely. No injuries were reported in association with this incident. Simple Flying has reached out to Turkish Airlines concerning the incident. This article will be updated once a response has been received.
Rise in disturbances
This incident is one of many flight disruptions caused by a misbehaved passenger that have taken place over the past few years. The reason for the recent rise in misbehaved passengers is unclear, as every situation is unique and different people have different motives. Alcohol and drugs are reported factors in many incidents involving misbehaved passengers. However, many of these incidents involve sober passengers.
Other psychological factors have been reported to play a part in disorderly conduct aboard an airplane. Regardless of the reason, airlines and government organizations are cracking down on disorderly passengers. Many airlines have established no-fly lists for passengers deemed disruptive from previous accounts of disrespectful conduct.