British passenger tried to ‘kick out’ windows during a mid-air rampage on VA flight to LA

The man arrested after trying to kick out the windows of a Virgin Atlantic plane causing the flight to be diverted to Salt Lake City will be deported to the UK once legal proceedings are complete.

William Hayes, 39, appeared in a Utah courtroom on Wednesday where he was charged with one count of interference with a flight crew and another of assault.

The father-of-one – whose 21-month-old baby son was injured in the melee he caused – wore a white t-shirt and gray sweatpants during the hearing which heard he had continued to be aggressive after being hauled off the plane and booked into Salt Lake City Metro Jail.

Hayes, who was traveling on an ESTA visa, was told he was being placed on an immigration detainer and will face a deportation hearing on August 3.

The prosecution told court that Hayes has no criminal history in either the UK or the US and said the British Consulate in LA would be providing advice.

Hayes’ heavily pregnant wife is now continuing on to LA with their son to retrieve luggage and arrange travel back to the UK.

Flight VS 141 – which was carrying approximately 264 passengers – was due to land in LA at 3.30pm local time Tuesday but eventually touched down on the West Coast shortly before 8pm after the unscheduled stop in Utah.

The flight crew were later seen with smiles on their faces after they touched down at LAX.

Hayes was arrested upon landing in Salt Lake City.

A law enforcement source said: ‘A passenger onboard became unruly and fought several passengers while attempting to move towards the cockpit.

‘During the fight, a mom dropped her baby causing injury. They eventually got him under control and handcuffed the guy, and diverted to [Salt Lake City] for police to enter the plane and take him into custody.’

Police said in a statement that they could not confirm if he attempted to break into the cockpit.

According to a complaint filed in court, Hayes was ‘loud, disruptive, threatening and abusive to other passengers and to crew members. Flight attendants opened a restraint kit as a precaution.’

‘At one point during the flight, Hayes assaulted a male passenger seated in front of him, grabbing the passenger’s shirt, attempting to hit him, and grabbing his throat. This action left visible marks on the assaulted passenger’s neck.’

It says that Hayes also spit on another passenger and attempted to bite them.

It was that passenger, along with others and crew members that restrained him and placed Hayes in handcuffs.

Even while restrained, Hayes continued to fight and ‘be abusive,’ kicking windows of the aircraft, the complaint states.

The filing shows he’s been charged with one count of interference with a flight crew, and another count of assault by striking, beating and wounding.

The atmosphere was tense at Heathrow Airport before the plane departed, with passengers waiting in a two-hour security line.

According to witnesses, Hayes was seated in Economy and fell asleep at one point but soon woke up and started rampaging around the plane.

The witnesses said the things got worse when he kept on drinking throughout the flight.

But the British man, who was traveling with his family, hadn’t counted on a group of US Marines aboard flight VS141, according to The Sun.

The Marines cut his rampage short when they jumped on top of him, witnesses said.

‘It took a good while to get him to sit back down and resolve it,’ said one observer. ‘Then a few hours later it happened again and I thought to myself, ”This may not end well.”

‘Later he had fallen asleep but woke up ready to go again and that’s when he started getting physical. There were a couple of US Marines who piled in on him.

‘He was sitting in the back and he got handcuffed right there.’

Hayes then started complaining that he couldn’t feel his fingers after they handcuffed him.

Police took him into custody, taking him off the aircraft with his family in Salt Lake City and the plane continued on to Los Angeles, with the tantrum delaying the flight by four hours.

‘The safety and wellbeing of our customers and crew is always our top priority and we don’t tolerate any behavior that compromises this,’ said Virgin Atlantic in a statement.

Other passengers blamed the chaos at Heathrow for creating a hostile atmosphere.

‘I was there for five hours and barely made my flight. People were not happy, people were very agitated,’ said one. ‘I’ve never been on a flight like that, there were so many screaming kids and irritated parents.’

‘The flight attendants seemed edgy from the beginning, I think right now the whole industry is not right. Heathrow was at limit numbers.’

The US Attorney is expected to file formal charges on Wednesday.