A passenger assaulted a Southwest Airlines employee while boarding a plane in Dallas that was bound for LaGuardia Airport on Saturday afternoon, a report said.
The airline worker was hospitalized following the attack at Dallas Love Field Airport and police arrested the passenger, WFAA reported, citing officials and police.
The unidentified passenger first had a “verbal altercation” with a flight attendant in the back of the plane before confronting another airline worker at the front of the plane and punching the woman in the head, police said.
It was unclear what sparked the chaos.
“Southwest Airlines maintains a zero-tolerance policy regarding any type of harassment or assault and fully support our employee as we cooperate with local authorities regarding this unacceptable incident,” Southwest Airlines said in a statement to the news outlet.
Airlines have experienced a surge of incidents involving unruly passengers during the COVID-19 pandemic, with thousands reported to the Federal Aviation Administration.