A woman has been ordered to pay Jet2.com more than £3,000 compensation after scuffling with another passenger during a flight, writes Olivia Rook.
Pauline Gordon and Ronald St Ville were banned from flying with Jet2 for life after their altercation last July.
A court heard how the pair were travelling from Stansted to Gran Canaria when a “seemingly innocuous disagreement turned serious”.
After shouting foul and abusive language at each other, the crew stepped in to restrain them when punches were thrown.
The aircraft was diverted to Faro airport in Portugal where they were met by police. The flight resumed 90 minutes later.
Besides banning the pair, Jet2 took action to recover losses it incurred as a result of the diversion.
And this week, the airline revealed its action had been successful after Gordon was ordered by Clerkenwell and Shoreditch County Court to pay the airline more than £3,000 compensation.
Phil Ward, Jet2.com managing director, said: “This is the latest of many successful court rulings against disruptive passenger behaviour, showing once again that there are serious consequences if you act in a disruptive fashion onboard an aircraft.
“As well as being banned from flying with us for life, Gordon must now repay us for losses incurred, which came about as a direct result of her actions.”
Ward added: “As a family friendly airline carrying millions of holidaymakers, many of whom are families, we want our customers to have an enjoyable flight experience without the actions of a disruptive few spoiling it.”
The incident is the latest resolution in Jet2’s crackdown on disruptive passenger behaviour.
The airline says it has issued more than 100 passengers lifetime bans for disruptive behaviour since 2015.