Hijack scare on Brisbane to Bali Virgin flight

A DRUNKEN passenger on board a Virgin Australia flight from Brisbane to Denpasar on the Indonesian island of Bali sparked a hijacking scare when he tried to enter the cockpit, according to reports.

The incident occurred on a Virgin Australia flight. Picture: Russavia (CC) [http://bit.ly/QDWdYP]

A Virgin Australia spokesman told Australia’s ABC News that the incident was a medical emergency involving an unruly passenger.

The spokesman said that the incident was not a hijacking, after local TV station Metro TV had earlier cited an Indonesian air force spokesman as saying the plane had been hijacked.

The plane, service VA41 from Brisbane to Denpasar, landed in Bali 30 minutes behind schedule. Indonesian media report that the passenger in question was arrested.

Virgin Australia Airlines, formerly Virgin Blue Airlines, is Australia’s second-largest airline as well as the largest by fleet size to use the Virgin brand.