Panic in the Sky – Indigo Passenger Slaps Man Mid-Flight During Panic Attack, Evicted Before Landing
- Neha Kumari
- Aug 3
- 3 min read
The fact is that air travel may be stressful to many people but one of the passengers on board an IndiGo flight, this was to become a nightmare of humiliation, misinterpretation, and physical violence.
It was supposed to be an act of empathy but was instead cruelty being displayed when during a flight, a man had a panic attack while in flight and instead of helping the individual, a fellow passenger not only slapped him but also physically removed him before the plane landed.
The half-shot incident has led to a shock way through the social media and has brought up some serious issues regarding the ways the airlines, crews, and other travelers manage mental health crisis cases in the air.
What Happened, really?
Eyewitnesses said that the man, whose name is not revealed, started showing the symptoms of anxiety and distress soon after takeoff. He also was found breathing hard, holding onto his chair and was visibly panicking.
One of the crew members came to give him water and attempted to calm him up but prior to any substantial assistance being provided, another passenger gave him up.
The next thing that ensued was unbelievable: the other occupant of the seat slapped the insecure man right across the face before the eyes of all the passengers in the plane.
Instead of being supported or being under protection, the man who was having the panic attack was perceived as a disturbance. The plane was forced to land in an emergency and they had to get him off the plane alone, upset, and still not feeling good.
The passenger that slapped him? Not detained. Even taken out.
What happened to the Empathy?
This is not something that happened in the flight. This is a total lack of empathy.
In some instances, such as anxiety attacks, claustrophobia and flight-induced trauma, mental health episodes are medical emergencies rather than acts of crime.
Think of how vulnerable you are in yourself, sweaty palms, elevated heart rate, an inability to breathe and rather than assistance you are kicked.
Not only is this unacceptable, but it is also inhuman.
Airlines have no use with panic, they require protocols.
IndiGo and most of the other airlines trumpet the safety regulations and hospitality. However, it is still rudimentary in terms of mental health training of cabin crew.
Why was no medical personnel involved and instead resorted to eviction?
Why did the passenger, arranging assault on another person not receive a reprimand on the spot?
One panic-stricken man was enough enough to test the capacity of the crew to give care.
What would happen in case of an actual in-flight mental health crisis?
This is evidence that airlines must be well trained on the topic of mental health crises and have their policies be more empathetic to individuals experiencing them as opposed to mistreating them.
Social Media Reacts
The moment the videos clips got surfaced in the net, netizens went berserk in anger and disappointed. Some of the comments and likes came to 600+ in just a few hours and some of them read as follows:
“Disgusting.
Mental health cannot be joked about Minutes before, the slapper and the crew should be ashamed of themselves.”
Thrown into the street with radioactive panic attack?
That is just inhuman.”
The airlines need to wake up.
Train your people and untill you can talk about hospitality..”
The pressure is mounting up on IndiGo to respond to the incident and currently the post has more than 600 likes.
What Now?
Mental health problems do not wait until the right time to create problems, or the right elapsed time to fly, or the right time schedule. Fear is reality Panic attacks are not imaginary
The absence of expression?
This is indeed very true
IndiGo Airlines has so far not provided an elaborate statement in relation to slapping or in relation to the treatment of the man.
Instead, activists are now calling out not only the airlines but the passenger who resorted to violence because it was his solution.
Final Word
It is not only about a single blow and a man. This has to do with what we do to people at their lowest.
It is time that we all pay attention to the issue, given that we all tend to discuss mental health so freely these days; however, at least at the altitude of 30,000 feet, there is room to improve.
Since panic meeting punishment should not be in the sky.
📅 By News Anek Digital Desk | August 3, 2025
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