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A Coomealla man was to have appeared in Wentworth Local Court on Tuesday (April 8) over the cancellation of a domestic flight, the Australian Federal Police said.
The AFP are alleging in court that the defendant, 32, was seated on an aircraft at Sydney Airport bound for Mildura, Victoria, on March 11 when he verbally abused and intimidated a cabin crew member.
The plane, which had taxied to the end of a runway, returned to a terminal; AFP officers forcibly escorted the man off and the flight was cancelled.
The man was taken to hospital under police guard for a mental health check and charged with three counts. He faces up to 10 years jail and a fine of $13,750 if convicted.
AFP Sydney Airport Commander Davina Copelin says they have zero tolerance for those who engaged in disruptive or criminal behaviour onboard aircraft.
“The safety and wellbeing of all travellers and workers is paramount,” she says.
“The AFP will take action against members of the public whose behaviour risks the safety of fellow passengers or airline staff.”
ONE CHARGED OVER MIDAIR SCARE
A Jordanian national has been charged with endangering the safety of a Sydney-bound aircraft and assaulting cabin crew.
AFP at Sydney Airport responded on Saturday evening (April 5) to an airline’s request for police to meet their flight inbound from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Police allege the defendant, 46, tried to open the aircraft’s rear emergency exit door mid-flight and was escorted to a seat in the middle of the aircraft but tried to open a middle exit door.
Police allege the man was restrained by crew and passengers during which he assaulted a crew member.
The man faces two counts of endangering the safety of an aircraft and one count of assaulting aircraft crew. The offences each carries a maximum penalty of 10 years jail.
$10,000 FINE FOR ONLINE THREAT
A south-western Sydney man was fined $10,000 by the Downing Centre Local Court on April 2 over an online threat he made to an international flight.
The man, 22, posted a threat to a Philippines-bound flight on December 19, 2024, and boarded the same flight at Sydney hours later, the AFP said.
The AFP were alerted to the threat, screened the flight and found there were no explosives onboard.
When the man returned to Australia in January, he was interviewed by the AFP and given a court attendance notice to appear before Downing Centre Local Court on one count of threatening aviation security.
He pled guilty, was convicted and was fined $10,000.
EX-BAGGAGE HANDLER FINED OVER VIDEOS
A former baggage handler who filmed himself in the engine turbine of a passenger aircraft at Sydney Airport was fined $2400 in Downing Centre Local Court on April 2.
The man pled guilty to threatening aircraft security and to failing to display security credentials.
The AFP says that in January 2025, the man accessed a restricted area and filmed himself removing his shirt and posing inside the turbine before uploading the footage.
When investigators interviewed the 23-year-old in February, a search of his devices discovered six videos of the incident.
