A mid-air brawl broke out aboard an AirAsia flight recently, after a dispute over loud conversation escalated into a physical altercation. Five passengers were penalized following the incident, with some receiving fines and others placed under administrative detention.
The incident occurred on AirAsia flight D7326, which was en route from Kuala Lumpur to Chengdu Tianfu International Airport. Around 10 p.m. on Monday, the Sichuan Provincial Airport Public Security Bureau received a report of an onboard conflict. Police officers were dispatched to handle the situation immediately after the plane landed.
Video footage captured by passengers showed the altercation taking place between male passengers seated in adjacent rows. Despite efforts by cabin crew and fellow passengers to de-escalate the situation, the individuals involved began physically attacking each other. The cabin briefly descended into chaos, with shouting and even a child’s cries heard in the background.
A passenger who filmed the scene said, “We were about to land when the shouting turned into a full-blown fight. It was unbelievable!” Others described the experience as extremely tense and unsettling, noting that it was the first time they had ever witnessed such violence on a flight.
According to an official police statement released on Tuesday, the conflict began when passenger Lu (male, 34) complained about the loud conversation coming from a group consisting of Meng (female, 38), Zhang (female, 37), Bai (male, 38), and Lei (male, 39). The verbal dispute escalated into a physical fight, resulting in visible injuries to Lu and Meng.
Authorities have since imposed administrative detention on Lu, Meng, and Zhang, while Bai and Lei received administrative fines for their roles in the incident.
Police emphasized that such behavior endangers in-flight safety and will be dealt with strictly in accordance with the law.
