HONG KONG: Mainland Passengers Beat Up Hong Kong Airport Staff After Flight Delay

A group of six tourists from mainland China were arrested at the Hong Kong International Airport today after being accused of assaulting airport staff members because their flight to Beijing had been delayed for more than six hours.

The incident occurred at around 2:30 a.m. as over 100 passengers on Hong Kong Airlines flight 304 were stranded at the airport due to to delays. Chaos ensued after one female passenger from mainland China reportedly tried to force her way onto an airplane. Seven staff members from the airline company had to rush over to stop her.

Five other agitated passengers also got physical with the staff members. During the chaos, three male and four female staff members were injured and sent to the hospital.

Police arrived at the scene and arrested three men and three women from mainland China for common assault.

The flight finally left Hong Kong at 4:45 a.m., 8.5 hours after it was meant to take off.

This isn't the first time unruly Chinese passengers have gotten an unfavorable mention in headlines. Last year, a plane flying from Shanghai to Hong Kong was grounded in Shenzhen, forcing passengers to spend the night on the plane. Passengers became so enraged that crew members had to guard the doors to keep them from breaking out.