Nine Arrested After Deadly Fight Erupts On Plane, Pregnant Mother Causes Emergency Landing!

By Swift Reporter

Nine passengers were arrested after a violent altercation broke out on board an Air Arabia flight at Palma Airport in Majorca, following a lengthy delay caused by a medical emergency involving a pregnant woman.

The incident occurred on Thursday evening at around 8pm on a flight operating the Rabat–Istanbul route. The aircraft had requested an emergency landing in Palma after a passenger in the late stages of pregnancy went into labour and her waters broke. The plane landed safely, and the woman was taken by ambulance to a local hospital.

However, tensions reportedly escalated during the prolonged delay before the aircraft could resume its journey. The flight had already departed late from Morocco and then remained grounded in Palma for nearly two hours, with some passengers claiming they were not adequately informed about the situation.

According to sources, the situation deteriorated when one passenger stood up to seek an explanation from the cabin crew. It is alleged that a flight attendant responded by telling her to sit down, prompting anger among several passengers. A fight then broke out, involving shoving and physical confrontations between passengers and members of the flight crew.

As the aircraft was preparing to take off again, the pilot aborted the departure and requested assistance from airport security. Several Civil Guard patrols boarded the plane and, after interviewing the crew and assessing the situation, arrested nine passengers—seven men and two women, all Moroccan nationals—for causing a public disturbance.

The aircraft later resumed its route to Istanbul with the remaining passengers.

The nine detainees were taken before a duty judge in Palma on Friday, where they exercised their right to remain silent. The court ordered their release with charges. However, police then presented them with two options: return to Morocco on a flight that same night or be transferred to a detention centre for irregular foreign nationals.

Six of the individuals opted to return to their country, while two were taken to the detention centre. A ninth person was arrested again after becoming involved in another fight with fellow detainees and confronting police officers in the courthouse corridor, leading to an additional charge of assaulting a public official.

Spanish authorities continue to review the incident, which caused significant disruption to the flight and highlighted the challenges of managing in-flight emergencies and prolonged delays.