Airline says American passenger bit flight attendant, forcing plane to return to Tokyo

(CNN) — An American passenger allegedly bit a cabin crew member during a flight on Tuesday, forcing a Seattle-bound All Nippon Airways flight to return to Tokyo, an airline spokesman said.

According to flight tracking website Flightradar24, ANA Flight 118 took off from Tokyo’s Haneda Airport at 9:47 pm local time and the journey took just over an hour.

Police took the passenger into custody after the plane landed in the Japanese capital, an airline spokesperson told CNN. They did not tell his name.

The flight attendant suffered minor injuries, the spokeswoman said.

The Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department declined to provide further details about the case.

This is not the first time that an air-biting incident has reportedly taken place. In 2022, two passengers received hefty fines for punching and biting crew and other passengers on separate American Airlines and Delta Airlines flights.

They were then fined $81,950 and $77,272, respectively, the two largest penalties ever imposed by the Federal Aviation Administration on passengers for misbehavior on an airplane.

There have been several incidents of bad behavior and assaults by passengers this month, including an American Airlines flight that was diverted to a Texas airport on January 3 after a passenger allegedly assaulted a flight attendant. Had punched and attacked the flight attendant. At least one police officer.