Man Behind Hijack Scare On Virgin Australia Flight Was Just Exhausted, Looking For Bathroom

(Travelin’ Librarian)

An Australian man who caused a hijacking scare on a recent Virgin Australia flight to Indonesia when he banged on the cockpit cabin’s door won’t be charged, officials say, because he was just exhausted and confused at the time. And he just needed to find the bathroom, which can make anyone act a little scary.

Indonesian authorities won’t be charging the 28-year-old man and will instead be focusing on the airline’s procedures for false alarms, reports The Australian Associated Press.

The man told police he’d awoken confused after being asleep, and when he banged on the cockpit door, he thought it was the bathroom. He also insisted that he hadn’t any booze, just soda, and some mild painkillers akin to aspirin or ibuprofen.

Whatever happens now will go down in Australia, said a Bali police rep.

“Regarding the legal process, it will be conducted in Australia because what he did in that plane was within a plane registered in Australia,” he said.

According to cops, the man was heading to Bali looking for his Indonesian wife after being separated for weeks, and was just really stressed out.

Aviation officials are also probing what happened before the hijacking alert was sent, resulting in an emergency response at the airport with police troops. Virgin Australia says it’s standard protocol for the crew to send an “unlawful interference code” to air traffic control when someone tries to get into the cockpit who shouldn’t be there.

“This is used by all airlines internationally to ensure the safety of passengers, crew and the aircraft,” Virgin Australia said. “The captain and crew ensured the highest level of safety was maintained on flight VA41 and followed standard operating procedures.”

Airport authorities say, however, that there was radio silence from the plane for 30 minutes after it landed, prompting officials to only board the plane after making visual contact.

Virgin says there was no lack of communication and that the captain was in contact with those on the ground before landing, “in line with correct protocols to keep them informed of the status of the disturbance prior to landing.”

Indonesia will not lay charges against hijacking scare man [Australian Associated Press]