On a British Airways to St. Lucia, a friendly conversation turned bad, resulting in the use of a duty-free bottle of wine as a weapon of attack and a brawl that sent a good Samaritan to the hospital.
Man Stabbed On British Airways Flight To Caribbean Using Broken Duty-Free Wine Bottle
BA2159 was traveling from London Gatwick (LGW) to Hewanorra International Airport in St. Lucia (UVF) on Monday, July 3, 2023.
As reported by the St Lucia Times, it appeared like the two men were friends during the earlier part of the flight, operated by a Boeing 777 aircraft. They joked. They drank alcohol together.
But something happened onboard, resulting in one man walking to the rear galley with his bottle of duty-free wine, smashing it against the galley counter (which send chards flying everywhere), then using the jagged edge of the bottle to attack his seatmate (and was purportedly intent upon attacking the whole family of the man).
A scuffle ensued and a good Samaritan tried to break it up. Instead, he received a deep gash that required medical attention from a nurse onboard and in a hospital on the ground.
Eventually, passengers and flight attendants were able to separate the two men and keep them seated until landing St. Lucia, where the stabber was arrested.
One passenger explained:
“I was onboard this flight and these guys were drinking and giving jokes with each other before this occurred.
“One man got stabbed in the torso and the other guy in the back of the head before another gentleman and myself were able to calm down this guy who purchased a duty free wine bottle which he used to commit the act.”
“Thankfully the escalated situation was dealt with swiftly and normalcy was maintained.”
Another shared:
“It was a truly frightening experience for the crowded passengers. There was a lot of understandable upset. The men were arguing throughout the flight after take-off from Gatwick Airport.
“The row turned into pushing and shoving then things suddenly got really nasty. It was horrifying when the passenger broke the bottle then used the shards as a weapon.
“Suddenly there was blood in the cabin. No one knew how gruesome it was going to get. It could have been so much worse.”
I’ll spare you and avoid embedding a video to the bloody incident, though it is not hard to find if you are interested.
CONCLUSION
Many carriers have eliminated duty-free sales onboard, though not for this reason. Maybe that’s another good reason to limit onboard sales, though I suppose this guy might have just found another object to weaponize. Scary stuff indeed, though the admonition to avoid excessive drinking onboard remains the best advice of all.
(H/T: Dave)
“But something happened onboard” … the something was alcohol. Just ban alcohol on flights and in airports. It would solve so many problems.
Just ban alcohol, it would eliminate drunk driving accidents and domestic abuse, solving even more issues.
@Jan
Let’s not forget banning alcohol would stop drunk texting and hangovers. Just saying last night guilty as charged! ;(
Yeah, cause alcohol bans are so effective…
“to attack his seatmate (and was purportedly intent upon attacking the whole family of his assailant)”
Wasn’t the guy with the knife the assailant?
You’re right.
Not that we need it but yet another argument in favor of a no-fly list.
British + alcohol : what can go wrong?
No Air Marshall? Stun guns and tasers should be mandatory training for flying guy attendants—also give them battle pay while in the air.
People can no longer control themselves. Way too many alcohol related incidents on planes nowadays. Time to ban alcohol on all commercial flights. Visually inebriated pax should not be allowed to board. I hope the Good Samaritan sues BA. A few financial hits to the airlines and they’ll get the message.