Flight attendant in a state of drunkenness after being deprived of drinks, police said

A Delta Airlines flight had to make an emergency landing in Oklahoma City on Friday after a passenger attacked a flight attendant, police said.

Derek Maas, 28, of Clearview, Utah, was arrested Friday morning and jailed in Oklahoma County Jail. Police officers from Oklahoma City responded to a report about an emergency landing at Will Rogers World Airport for Delta flight 2603 at 2 am, KWTV-DT reported.

The flight, departing from Salt Lake City and heading for Orlando, called for an emergency landing at the Oklahoma City Airport due to a "violent and unruly passenger", according to the radio. Police said that Maas's breath smelled of alcohol, that he was unstable on his feet and that he had lost balance by walking towards the officer , reported KWTV-DT.

A Delta Air Lines plane landed at the Los Angeles International Airport on July 12th. A flight from Delta Air Lines to Orlando had to make an emergency landing on Friday morning in Oklahoma City after a drunk passenger told me. Photo of Mario Tama / Getty Images

A spokesman for the Oklahoma City Police Department said Newsweek that Maas had been drinking before boarding the flight, but that it initially posed no threat to crew members or passengers. A flight attendant at first refused to serve him more drinks, but he told her that he could fall asleep if he could take another drink. She obeyed, but when he asked for more drinks, she said no.

The police said Newsweek that Maas began to become more "belligerent" and began to verbally harass the woman on board. A male flight attendant attempted to intervene, but Maas "hit him on the head" and a fight broke out, police said. He was detained when the police boarded the plane, the spokesman said.

In a statement to Newsweek Delta praised the flight crew after Maas became "unruly and violent" in the plane.

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"Delta applauds the quick action and professionalism of the Delta Flight 2603 crew operating from Salt Lake City to Orlando, who headed to Oklahoma City after a client became unruly and violent on board," says communicated. "The crew withheld the client and the flight was respected by law enforcement in Oklahoma City, where he was abducted and taken into custody. The flight continued to Orlando, arriving two hours away. The safety and security of our customers and crew is always Delta's top priority. "

This is not the first time Delta passengers have to restrain an unruly passenger. In August, two passengers detained a man who wanted to "catch the plane" and wanted to leave the flight. James Tennell, a correctional officer, told WAGA that during the Delta 1249 flight from Portland, Maine, to Atlanta, a passenger started to hit one of the traffic lights. position on board.