Seems a bit drastic and a total waste of money.

Essex ‘explosion’ was ‘sonic boom’ caused by military aircraft https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-essex-48732642

How do you know? Are you fully aware of the details?

Only from what we’re allowed to know…

That’s what they want you to think!

Wake up, sheeple!

Was Boris on the flight?

No idea why military planes were deployed. But its not really a waste of money. Piolts have to log X amount if hours so if they weren’t doing this they’d be doing something else. Overall the planes will be up in the air for the same amount of time.

That sort of reaction sounds like it may have been a bit more than a rowdy passenger.

There’s nothing the fighters could have done to what was happening inside the plane, so possibly their purpose was to shoot it down if necessary.

Comforting thought to have when you look out your plane window and see a couple of fighters…

Got to be more of a perceived threat than a rowdy passenger. WTF are the RAF going to do about a pissed up idiot with a bottle of duty free Vodka? Fast jets are there as an insurance policy against it being ditched onto central London.

It’s a case of being prepared and ready to tackle whatever occurs if the situation escalates. They don’t know the facts from the ground, don’t know how many people are involved, if others are involved so just taking precautions. They can’t trust the pilot is reporting the situation accurately or fully or even if the pilot knows the full extent of the incident or is even involved in some way. Imagine if, as a result of some incident a plane crashed in a built up city and it came out after that the pilot declared an emergency and they did diddly squat about it. That’s the nature of security…responding to every single situation in the hope you catch that once in a decade properly serious incident.

Fair points that I hadn’t considered.

From a different perspective – I hope the stupid bitch who caused the incident is now sued by the RAF for every penny she has as a contribution towards the costs incurred. In addition, I hope she is barred from all flights for a minimum of 10 years.

Happened over Leeds a few years ago,  think that was because a plane had gone off course somewhere near Scotland or something.

chances are two RAF planes already in air clocking hours as some previous said. Call comes in they attend as “training” no real money spent.

Have been on a plane that got french airforce escort for no real reason.

Happened over Leeds a few years ago, think that was because a plane had gone off course somewhere near Scotland or something.

Yep, they flew over Harrogate too, our office shook…

chances are two RAF planes already in air clocking hours as some previous said. Call comes in they attend as “training” no real money spent.

Nope. They’d have been scrambled for this.

Wobbliscott has it 👍🏼

We should expect the disruptive passenger is given the harshest punishment, but sadly it won’t deter other idiots. Banning booze from airports and aircraft would help.

Quick Reaction Alert

 its not really a waste of money. Piolts have to log X amount if hours so if they weren’t doing this they’d be doing something else. Overall the planes will be up in the air for the same amount of time.

This. Very similar to (what used to be the case with ) Air/Sea Rescue helicopters. Pilots and crews can “train” but real situations are better.

More to the point WTF are the crabs doing working at the weekend.

Very similar to (what used to be the case with ) Air/Sea Rescue helicopters.

I knew a helicopter pilot at RAF Valley and to hone their, and the winch mans, skills they would hover over a filed and hang a guy at the cable to pick mushrooms.

Quick Reaction Alert

There were times during the Cold War when QRA jets would be on the runway, engines running ready to go in literally a couple of seconds.

As said above though, QRA is a routine part of UK Defence and much as the papers like to make a big deal of it when they escort a Russian bomber in international airspace just off Scotland or something it’s nothing out of the ordinary; happens 2 – 3 times a week usually. Better to have them up there not needed than leave them on the ground (and it sends a message to any potential aggressors that in the event of a civilian aircraft hijacking / disruption / distress call, we’ll still go up and take a look).

Assault and some extremely ill-conceived threats would be enough to trigger the escort, don’t know if that’s what happened here though

I hope the perpetrator is punished to the full extent of the law, but banning booze on planes is a bit harsh. Of all the millions of flights that occur every day ferrying about the hundreds of millions of people around the world, the majority of whom have had a drink and a good number had ‘too much’, incidents like this are extremely rare and a much lower proportion of people cause trouble than on a typical Friday night down your local town or city centre. So no need to curtail the enjoyment for the overwhelming majority of people who can take a few drinks and sit on a plane and be perfectly civilised – like me!! There is nothing like an 8am pint in some airport bar to give you that ‘I’m on holiday’ feeling. One of life’s guilty pleasures.

It won’t have been a diverted training incident that had dealt with this as if the situation was a ‘real’ one they wouldn’t be able to cope…you wouldn’t send a trainee paramedic on a call just because they were in the area, but by the same token sending out the proper QAR guys out to what turns out to be non-events is training in itself and keeps the whole system well tested. There will be debrief sessions after every call to review if any part of the system can be improved so it is continually being improved and tested.

Maybe there was a woman in red cocktail dress on board. Seems reasonable force to me if there was.

Well, doubt she’ll be flying a commercial jet again anytime soon…

Post 9/11 I suspect there is quite a low threshold for the Captain having to declare a risk to the flight which triggers an automatic threat response..

I’ve flown quite a bit over the last 20 years and seen plenty of rowdy passengers. Arrested, kicked off before push back etc. But never anything like this, she must have been going for it big time.

The august publication of true facts, the Mirror, claims she tried to storm the cockpit. https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/jet2-plane-passenger-pinned-down-16791116

Fair points that I hadn’t considered.

What? Find your own internet if you want to be reasonable.

More to the point WTF are the crabs doing working at the weekend.

That’s the most important unanswered question here.

I laughed at Drac, somebody gag me.. .

I’m sure I read somewhere that she claimed to have a “suspicious package”.

Having worked on QRA I know the jets would have been armed to the teeth.

I guess, if you’re intent on getting done for drunk and disorderly, having to have 2 jet fighters escort you to the cells is as cool as it’s gonna get…

This won’t have been a standard rowdy passenger. That happens all the time & you don’t get the QRA’s scrambled. There will definintely have been exacerbating factors.

Ridiculous is the amount of people who immediately phone 999 because they hear a loud bang.

Your’s or someone’s life in danger or witnessed some explosion/crash/etc? Nope? Don’t call 999 FFS!

Having worked on QRA I know the jets would have been armed to the teeth.

Which is how an 92 Sqn aircraft on QRA came to score the only RAF Phantom air to air kill…

Edit: Linky

I heard the sonic boom while sat on the sofa with the kids. You could tell it was a really loud noise, some distance away. It was loud enough to have me heading up stairs to look out of a front window, that has “views” over sunny Brentwood. Not really sure I was expecting to see much, as I thought it was a fair distance away, but looked west towards London wondering whether I’d see a mushroom cloud !!

So I guess that leads me to have two questions. Please excuse my naivety

1) Sonic booms …. the build up of air pressure around the plane, right? But when it goes pop! Does the pressure start to build up again? If I was closer to the jet would the sound have been louder? Or is it more like a sonic wake ??

2) Your common all garden improvised terrorist thermonuclear device (as opposed to a massive Russian mega bomb)… If indeed set off in central London, would I hear it in sunny Brentwood (20 odd miles away) ??

Why is everyone assuming this is booze related? Could it not just be a terrorist threat?

I’m all for banning booze on planes.

My jumper on my lap was deemed more hazardous on take off rather than the fact that the row of people behind me could barely stand up.

Anyone even slightly pissed shouldn’t be allowed on the plane.

Anyone even slightly pissed shouldn’t be allowed on the plane.

This.

would I hear it in sunny Brentwood (20 odd miles away) ??

Not for about a minute and a half.