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Willa Wu

An elderly passenger was handcuffed and escorted off a Cathay Pacific Airways’ flight by American law enforcement after the plane landed in San Francisco, Hong Kong’s flag carrier has confirmed, saying the man had been disruptive on board.
Cathay said on Saturday the man’s unruly conduct on flight 872 from Hong Kong to San Francisco on October 9 had affected the safety of other passengers.
“Despite a verbal warning from the cabin crew, the disruptive behaviour persisted,” the carrier’s spokesman told the Post. “A written warning was also issued and local enforcement was notified to accompany the customer to disembark from the flight on arrival.”
No passengers or staff were injured in the incident, while the elderly man was now barred from all flights operated by the Cathay Group, according to the company.
“The safety of our customers and crew guides every decision we make,” the spokesman added.
The airline did not give details of the arrested passenger.
A video posted on mainland Chinese social media platform Xiaohongshu shows a man handcuffed and escorted off a Cathay flight by at least two US Customs and Border Protection officers.
The man was first heard yelling in Cantonese asking what crime he had committed, then in Mandarin asking where he was being taken.
“Help! Do you have any evidence?” the man said in Mandarin.
Macau Jing Jiang, the internet user who posted the video, said that passengers waited for about 20 minutes before they were asked to depart the cabin.
“The man was handcuffed and put in the rear of the plane after another passenger made a report to police about something. Maybe a dispute, I assume,” she said in the video.
She added that after she left the cabin, she saw the passenger who had called police being consulted by local officers.
The Post has contacted the internet user for comment.
In another video reposted in an article by a local media outlet, the elderly man is heard saying he did not violate any laws, adding he was more than 80 years old.
An insider familiar with the company told the Post earlier there was a four-tier threat level system to report any unusual passenger behaviour under internal Cathay guidelines.
The four levels of rising seriousness are disruptive behaviour, physically abusive behaviour, life-threatening behaviour and attempted breach of the flight deck.
The handling of a disruptive passenger involves issuing a verbal warning and telling the captain. If needed, a written warning will be issued with the captain’s consent.
Upon landing, local Cathay security staff will decide whether to involve law enforcement.
If a passenger’s behaviour threatens aircraft safety, he or she should be restrained and handed over to police at the destination.
Last month, Cathay blacklisted two Cantonese-speaking passengers who harassed a mainland traveller on a London-bound flight.
The mainland traveller said on Xiaohongshu that she was kicked and verbally abused by the couple seated behind her after she reclined her seat.


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Cathay Pacific

Elderly passenger handcuffed, escorted off Cathay flight from Hong Kong to San Francisco

A video posted on Xiaohongshu showed a man being escorted off the flight by US Customs and Border Protection officers. Photo: Handout

Cathay Pacific flight from New York to Hong Kong diverted due to geomagnetic storm

Planes are dependent on a global navigation satellite system which can be affected by weather conditions, an expert says. Photo: May Tse

Passengers check in before their flight at Hong Kong International Airport. Photo: Elson Li

Cathay Pacific diverts Hong Kong-New York flight to Tokyo after passenger falls ill

Hong Kong flag carrier Cathay Pacific Airways has diverted a US-bound flight to Japan after a passenger reported feeling unwell. Photo: X/Cygnus

Singapore Airlines, Scoot to offer 420,000 cheap tickets, putting heat on Hong Kong’s Cathay

Scoot’s discounts, meanwhile, extend to flights throughout the Asia-Pacific region and Europe, encompassing new destinations such as Indonesia’s Kertajati in West Java, Thailand’s Koh Samui and Malaysia’s Malacca. Photo: Getty Images

Cathay Pacific flight diverted to Tokyo to remove ‘unruly passenger’ who verbally abused crew

The aircraft was diverted to Narita airport in Tokyo. Photo: Shutterstock

Cathay recently blacklisted a couple after a row on a London-bound flight. Photo: Jonathan Wong

News

Hong Kong

Transport

Man had been warned of his disruptive behaviour but did not comply, carrier says adding no passengers or staff were injured in incident


Man had been warned of his disruptive behaviour but did not comply, carrier says adding no passengers or staff were injured in incident.


Hong Kong aviation

Aviation