Thailand’s Defence Ministry confirmed that a man who caused a disturbance on a flight from Malaysia to Don Mueang International Airport was a military personnel member, who is on a mental health treatment.
Footage of the incident was posted on the Social Hunter 2022 Facebook page last week before being reposted by several news agencies. The video showed a Thai man wearing a white T-shirt getting out of his seat and demanding that the aircraft stop.
Flight crew members attempted to calm the man and return him to his seat, but he resisted. A flight attendant and other passengers eventually restrained him and tied him to the seat after he continued resisting.
The man repeatedly shouted, “I have to get out of here”, while also using vulgar language during the restraint. Amarin TV reported that he developed violent behaviour shortly after the aircraft took off and that the disturbance continued during the flight.
After the footage circulated online, Thai social media users shared unconfirmed claims that the man was a soldier serving under the Ministry of Defence.
Defence Ministry spokesperson Surasan Kongsiri later confirmed that the man was a military personnel member serving under the Office of Defence Policy and Planning.
Surasan said the military personnel member had a mental health condition that had developed from personal issues and was already receiving treatment. He said the condition unexpectedly emerged during the flight.
Following the incident, the Defence Ministry transferred the man to Phramongkutklao Hospital for further medical treatment. The ministry has not disclosed his identity.
The Thailand military passenger flight incident comes amid several recent cases involving disturbances connected with air travel and airports.
On July 29, a group of Chinese fans caused a disturbance at Suvarnabhumi International Airport after reportedly following two Chinese artists onto a flight from Bangkok to Beijing. The fans had booked the same flight as the artists and allegedly continued following them despite airport and airline security measures.
The airline temporarily closed the aircraft door during the incident and later denied boarding to 22 Chinese passengers identified as members of the fan group over concerns that further disruption could affect other passengers.
Suvarnabhumi Airport later acknowledged that one security guard behaved inappropriately while dealing with the Chinese passengers by making a slant-eye gesture, prompting criticism and an apology from the airport.
Another disturbance was reported on a flight from Vietnam to Bangkok in February. A foreign man believed to be Russian reportedly exited an aircraft through an emergency door shortly after it landed.
Airport officials subsequently stopped the man after following him on the runway. No other passengers were reported injured in that incident.
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