Man charged, plane diverted to Cairns over drunken tirade on international Qantas flight
Australian Federal Police have charged a man over a drunken tirade that forced an international Qantas flight to divert to far north Queensland.
The plane was on a flight from Bangkok to Sydney on Sunday morning when it is alleged the passenger tried to take alcohol from a food service trolley without paying.
He was restrained after he became loud and abusive toward the crew and the captain decided to divert the flight to Cairns as a safety precaution.
AFP officers were waiting for him when the plane touched down and he was removed and taken into custody.
The 34-year-old man has since been charged with with behaving in an offensive and disorderly manner and interfering with the crew and aircraft.
He was remanded in custody and is due to appear in the Cairns Magistrates Court on Monday.
Qantas says it has a zero tolerance toward antisocial behaviour. The plane has since landed in Sydney.
