Unruly passenger diverts flight after 'yelling death threats'

A disruptive passenger has forced a flight from Melbourne to Perth to be diverted to Adelaide.

Virgin Australia aircraft in Melbourne.

Virgin Australia aircraft in Melbourne. Source: AAP

A flight from Melbourne to Perth was unexpectedly diverted to Adelaide to remove an unruly passenger reportedly yelling death threats.

The "disruptive" female passenger was forcibly removed from the plane by Australian Federal Police officers, a Virgin Australia spokeswoman confirmed.

One passenger on social media said: "So now I'm in Adelaide airport because there was a nutter on the plane yelling death threats. Wondering if we will take off again for Perth?"

Another passenger, also wrote on social media he was on the flight and the woman appeared "very distressed".

"Passenger was experiencing some mental illness. No one was at any actual risk at any point - empty threat from very distressed person," he tweeted.

Flight VA 697 had been tracking over the Great Australian Bight when it made an unexpected diversion to Adelaide Airport just after midnight.

It took off again at 1am on Friday, an airport spokesman said.

The flight arrived in Perth in the early hours of Friday morning.


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