DailyMail.com has learned that a Virgin Atlantic flight flying from London to Los Angeles to London was forced to make an emergency landing in Salt Lake City on Tuesday night after a passenger got disruptive.
Flight VS 141 – carrying around 264 passengers – was scheduled to arrive in LA at 3:30PM local time. However, it eventually arrived on the West Coast just before 8pm following an unscheduled stopover in Utah.
After touching down at LAX, their flight crew could be seen smiling after landing.
Sources told DailyMail.com that a baby was injured in the melee – sparked when a passenger William Stephen Hayes, a UK resident, allegedly tried to storm the cockpit but was stopped by other passengers – some believed to be a group of US Marines – and crew members.
Hayes (39), was taken into custody by the FBI after he landed in Salt Lake City.
According to a law enforcement source, the incident occurred when a passenger boarded became disruptive and began fighting with other passengers as he tried to get towards the cockpit.
“During the fight, a mother dropped her child, inflicting injury.” The man was eventually subdued and taken into custody. [Salt Lake City]police are to be allowed into the plane in order to take him into custody.
According to police, they were unable to confirm that he had attempted entry into the cockpit.
British passenger William Stephen Hayes was 39 when he became unruly while on Virgin Atlantic’s flight between London and Los Angeles. After an emergency landing in Salt Lake City, he was escorted from the aircraft.
Marines had to act quickly to restrain an unruly passenger after a woman reportedly dropped her baby.
After landing at LAX, their flight crews were greeted with smiles.
Flight VS 141 – carrying around 264 passengers – was scheduled to arrive in LA at 3:30pm. However, it eventually arrived on the West Coast just before 8pm following an unscheduled stopover in Utah.
This outburst caused the flight to be delayed for four hours. Crew are seen smiling and content that they made it to their destination.
The atmosphere was tense at Heathrow, London before the plane departed, with passengers waiting in a two-hour security line.
Hayes was in the Economy seat when he became aggressive during the flight. He allegedly faced off with three flight attendants.
He fell asleep once, but he soon woke up to go wild and start running around the airplane.
He continued drinking during the entire trip and finally took his anger out on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner windows.
According to The Sun, the British man was travelling with his family and hadn’t considered that he might have been joined by a number of US Marines on flight VS141.
Witnesses said that the Marines stopped him from running off and jumped on top.
One observer said that it took him a while to resolve the problem. “Then it happened again, and I was unsure if this would end well.
“Later, he was able to fall asleep again but got up and went. This is when he began getting physically active. He was surrounded by a few US Marines.
“He was sitting at the back, and he was handcuffed there.”
Stock photo: Heathrow chaos blamed by passengers for creating hostile environment. (Pictured at Heathrow, June 27, 2007)
HEATHROW Image of luggage left at baggage reclaim in Heathrow Terminal 3 in July
Hayes complained that his fingers were numb after being handcuffed.
His family was in Salt Lake City when he was arrested by police. He was then taken from the plane and flown to Los Angeles.
Virgin Atlantic released a statement saying that the safety and wellbeing our crew members and customers are our primary concern.
Some passengers blame Heathrow chaos for the hostile environment.
“I was there for five hour and just barely made it to the airport. One said that people weren’t happy and were very upset. “I have never experienced a flight with so many crying children and angry parents.
The flight attendants appeared edgy at the beginning. I feel that the entire industry is wrong now. Heathrow had a limit on its capacity.
On Wednesday, the US Attorney will file formal charges.