Fact Check: Viral video showing passengers fighting in an aeroplane is not from Shamshabad airport
Confrontations are more common on public transportation vehicles, where passengers become restless on minor topics
Shamshabad Airport
Confrontations are more common on public transportation vehicles, where passengers become restless on minor topics and fight with each other. Sometimes, the fight might start due to poor infrastructure, or being unreliable in timing including irregular timings. Confrontation between passengers and the authorities are seen occasionally during train or bus journeys, but altercations on a flight are rare. When such altercations take place, the news goes viral. A video of a confrontation between passengers on a flight is being shared on social media with the claim that the incident took place at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) in Shamshabad, Hyderabad.
A video published by the YouTube channel of Big TV claims that the incident took place at Shamshabad airport. The anchor states that the issue was about the seat. Even though passengers had booked seats during a flight journey, one of the passengers behaved rudely by occupying another seat.
The video is shared with title “విమానంలో పొట్టు పొట్టు కొట్టు
Other X users also shared the video with the captions like “విమానంలో సీట్ల కోసం లొల్లి..
While others shared it with captions like “శంషాబాద్ అంతర్జాతీయ విమానాశ్
Fact Check:
The claim is Misleading. The video is an old one and the incident did not take place in Shamshabad airport.
When we performed a Google reverse image search and searched the keyframes extracted from the viral video, we found several social media posts published in the year 2022. An X user posted the video on December 29, 2022, with the caption “Fight Breaks Out Between Passengers in Thai Smile Airlines Flight From Bangkok to India.”
News mobile India also shared the video with the caption “WATCH | Scuffle between passengers inside a Thai Smile Airways Bangkok-Kolkata flight”
An article published by the Economic Times states the fight started in a flight from Bangkok to Kolkata. One of the passengers started the fight by defying the flight attendant's safety warnings. The cabin staff had instructed passengers to set their seatbacks upright prior to the flight. This is a common safety procedure for takeoff and landing on aircraft. If chairs are reclined, it may be challenging to evacuate in an emergency.
Thai Smile Airways expressed regret for the situation. In a tweet, the airline stated that the issue was handled properly, since we adhere to the highest international standards, while following flight safety protocols.
Therefore, the incident seen in the viral video did not occur at the Shamshabad airport. The video is an old one and the fight occurred on a flight travelling from Bangkok to Kolkata. The claim is Misleading.