Malaysia Airlines flight returns to Sydney due to 'disruptive passenger'

SYDNEY: A Malaysia Airlines flight headed to Kuala Lumpur was forced to turn back to Sydney Airport on Monday (Aug 14) due to a disruptive passenger on board. 

Flight MH122 took off from Sydney Airport just after 1pm, with 199 passengers and 12 crew members.

It landed safely back on the runway at about 3.45pm.

Video taken by a passenger appears to show a man, who was wearing a backpack, threatening passengers and staff.

"In the interest of safety, the commander of the flight made a decision to return to Sydney," a Malaysia Airlines spokesperson in response to CNA's queries.

"The disruptive passenger has now been detained by local police."

The Australian Federal Police (AFP) said a man, 45, had been arrested without incident.

"There is no impending threat to the community," it added.

"The AFP will not divulge operational matters, however, an emergency response plan was enacted and an evacuation was initiated once it was deemed safe for passengers and crew."

According to 9 News, the plane was parked on the end of a runway with emergency vehicles nearby.

Sydney Airport said that as a result of the incident, 32 domestic flights were cancelled - 16 inbound and 16 outbound - with delays of up to 90 minutes for other domestic flights.

There were no international flights cancelled.

Malaysia Airlines said other passengers and crew members completed disembarkation at 7pm.

"The aircraft will be thoroughly inspected by the police," said the spokesperson. 

"Passengers will be transferred to the next available flights after obtaining clearance from the authorities."