Chaos on-Board: Passenger's Meal Tantrum Forces Flight to Turn Back

A flight from New York to Milan was forced to turn back after an unruly passenger caused chaos on-board. American Airlines flight 198 took off from John F. Kennedy International Airport around 7pm on Monday (April 7), but had to return to the New York airport around halfway through the flight.

Scuffle on-Board
Eyewitnesses on the flight said a man became angry when he couldn't sit in an exit row with a baby and also when he didn't receive his preferred meal. His complaints soon escalated.

Speaking to CBS news, passenger Krystie Tomlinson said: "We kind of noticed a scuffle in the back. They were asking around if there were any police officers or Army members, or somebody who could help because there were no air marshals on".

Uproar in the Air
Fellow passenger Michael Scigliano added: "They were telling everyone that there were technical issues on the plane, which is even scarier".

Confrontation Unfolds
Passengers soon noticed the scuffle and the real reason for the plane needing to return to JFK. Michael said: "There was apparently somebody in the back, he was charging at the stewardesses. At some point, he charged past all of our seats and tried to barge into the pilot's cabin".

Meal Mishap
"Apparently, the whole thing started because of a meal choice they didn't get. I guess they asked for it ahead of time. They never got exactly what they wanted. They also wanted to sit in an exit row. They had a baby with them, so they told them they couldn't and apparently those two things are what pushed the person over the edge".

Unsettling Incident
"The guy was still in the back of the plane unprotected, unrestrained, which was a little bit scary considering we had a plane full of 300 people and there was no air marshal on board, and we've got this crazy man in the back".

Return to JFK
Passengers arrived back in JFK at 3am, and had to wait on the plane for the authorities to escort the man off. However, the weary passengers weren't offered any help from the airline. "Back to New York at 3:30 in the morning. They offered us nothing", Michael said, while Krystie added: "I asked to use the American Airlines lounge to breastfeed and change. They said you can go in if you pay $79".

Delayed Journey
The stranded passengers were forced to stay in the airport overnight, before boarding their rebooked flight the next morning at 11am. At this point, it had been 16 hours since their original flight took off.

Investigation Ongoing
In a statement, American Airlines said: "American Airlines flight 198 with service from New York (JFK) to Milan (MXP) returned to JFK due to a disruptive passenger. The safety and security of our customers and team members is our top priority and we thank our customers for their understanding". The FAA say they are investigating the incident. Last year, they dealt with over 1,800 incidents that involved unruly passengers. The man has since been released without charge according to police.