Topless passenger declared flight 'next 9-11'
January 14, 2004 - 3:57PM
Passengers on a Virgin Blue flight last week from Hobart to Melbourne endured a 50-minute tirade by a woman who stripped topless and ranted the flight was the next September 11, according to a witness.
A passenger on board the flight, known only as Ellie, told Melbourne radio station 3AW the woman "absolutely went psycho" as flight DJ 145 taxied onto the runway last Thursday night.
Ellie said the woman became loud and erratic, telling passengers she had met an Israeli man who had a vision that everyone was going to die and the plane was the next September 11.
"She wanted to get off the plane and she just said: 'We have to stop, we have to stop, we're all going to die, this is the next 9/11 ... you can't let this plane take off'," Ellie said.
"The whole plane was basically freaked out."
Ellie said the plane stopped when it reached the runway and airline staff spoke to the woman.
She said the pilot decided to continue with the flight, but when they were airborne the woman resumed her ranting, removing her top.
"She just absolutely went psycho," she said.
"She was yelling, standing up, raising her arms.
"My initial thought was (she was a) female terrorist, suicide bomber kind of thing.
"She really didn't know what she was doing when we took off and her mental state just got worse and worse as the plane was in the air."
Ellie said the passengers applauded when they touched down in Melbourne, and three or four security guards boarded the plane and whisked the woman away.
She said the pilot thanked the passengers for their patience with the "environmental anomaly", but she was concerned the woman was not removed in Hobart when the airline had the chance.
Virgin Blue spokeswoman Amanda Bolger confirmed an "unsettled" guest disrupted passengers on the flight, but the cabin crew had determined she was not a safety risk.
Ms Bolger said the cabin supervisor spoke to the woman as the plane taxied to the tarmac and gave her the option to leave, but she calmed down and declined.
She said the supervisor also spoke to the captain and it was agreed she could stay on the aircraft.
Ms Bolger said once in the air, she became unsettled again and disruptive, but would not reveal the details of the woman's behaviour.
"Our crew are highly trained to deal with all sorts of people, but it did not affect the safety of the aircraft or passengers," she said.
"It obviously did upset at least one of the guests seated around her ... we would like to speak to that passenger."
Ms Bolger said the disruptive passenger was met by Australian Protective Service (APS) officers when the plane landed in Melbourne.
However, an APS spokeswoman said they had no record of the incident.
