Man ordered to pay more than £4000 in fuel fees after flight diverted due to his bad behaviour

He won't act like this again in a hurry

According to the Australian Federal Police, a 32-year-old man from Western Australia became disruptive on a flight headed from Perth to Sydney back in September 2023.

The plane was forced to turn around and go back to Perth meaning the pilot had to dump some fuel to land safely.

As a result, the passenger has now been ordered to pay $8,630 AUD (£4,000) to cover the cost of the wasted fuel.

Perth Magistrate Court fined him a further $8,990 AUD meaning his bad behaviour cost him approximately $17,620.

Shona Davis, the AFP’s Acting Superintendent said: “This incident should serve as a warning that criminal behaviour on board can come at a heavy cost to the offender.

“It’s far simpler to obey the directions of airline staff than cause unnecessary issues, which can end up hitting you in the hip pocket.”

Though the incident occurred in September 2023, it has taken approximately a year to bring the case to court.

The man nor the airline were named in court proceedings and the specifics of his behaviour were also not disclosed.

The passenger pleaded guilty to one count of disorderly behaviour on an aircraft and one count of failure to comply with safety instructions.

Though it is not unheard of for a disruptive passenger to be fined for the cost of fuel, other fines are more common.

The highest individual penalty was issued to a traveller who brought their own alcohol on board, was intoxicated, attempted to smoke marijuana in the lavatory and sexually assaulted a flight attendant all within a single flight.

The fine amounted to $40,823 USD (£31,000).