Intoxicated man taken into custody at Wellington Airport following mid-flight incident

An intoxicated man was taken into custody after his plane landed at Wellington Airport last night, after reports of “mid-air drama” with coffee thrown during the flight.

Police confirmed a passenger on board a flight heading to the capital was escorted off the aircraft after it touched down.

According to Wellington Live, the incident erupted during the flight between a man and a woman and involved coffee being thrown in the cabin.

“A man was seen flailing about ‘trying to remove bags’ while the seatbelt sign was on.

“The man’s companion was moved to another seat by the awesome Air NZ cabin crew.”

An officer who boarded the plane and escorted the intoxicated man off the flight was overheard commenting about the alcohol smell on the man’s breath, Wellington Live said.

A police spokesperson said about 6.50pm yesterday, they responded to a breach of the peace involving a disruptive passenger flying to Wellington from Dunedin.

“A 42-year-old man was taken into custody and released later that night.”

Air New Zealand confirmed police met a man at Wellington Airport.

Wellington Airport was approached for comment, but deferred all questions to police.

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