MALAYSIA AIRLINES: Court reveals details of events leading to the turn back to Sydney of flight MH122
Cast your mind back to news reports of a flight turnback of a Malaysia Airlines A330 on the afternoon of 14, 2023. Flight MH122 was one-and-a-half hours into its flight to Pakistan via Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia and Muscat in Oman.
The aircraft was carrying 199 passengers, with a passenger behaving strangely, mentioning the word ‘bomb’ praying in the aisle of the aircraft, trying to gain access to the front of the aircraft instead of remaining in his 21G seat.
The passenger, Arif, was abusive to other passengers and exhibited a range of odd behaviours on flight MH122. He remonstrated with passengers, left his seat to pray multiple times, and changed. These were sufficient for proximate passengers to raise the alarm with staff, and seek to be reseated away from Arif.
Through his words and actions, including accessing a black backpack which he refused to surrender, and warning staff not to touch it ‘If you love your life.’ He then explicitly said:
“Don’t come near my bag. If you come near my bag, it might explode. You need to move back. You have no idea what I have in here so move back.”
Arif, quoted in court documents
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Captain’s advice to air traffic control
Once advised of the behaviour and threats, the Captain of flight MH122 reported to air traffic control that the passenger was making threats, including the use of explosive devices. The plane, then over north-west New South Wales was allowed to return to Sydney, landing a 3:47pm.
Remaining on the tarmac for more than three hours, caused disruption to 32 domestic flight. They were either delayed or cancelled as the airport went to single runway operation.
At about 4:55pm, Arif announced from the aisle that it was all a hoax and he had been acting – his former profession, hailing his behaviour as a test from God.
Authorities took a slow and careful approach to the situation. They were later accused of being too patient, with some passengers and observers thinking that storming the plane — like in the movies, was a better option.
Fortunately, cooler heads prevailed, and the Australian Federal Police waited until 6:30 pm to arrest Arif and evacuate the plane only when it was safe for passengers and crew.
Personal traumas
It was revealed in court that 46-year-old Canberra resident Muhammad Arif was in the middle of a marriage breakdown. He had also left his security patrol job. He bought a bus ticket to Sydney, and withdrew AU$6,000 at Sydney Airport
Having been removed from the aircraft but refusing to answer police questions, Arif was taken to a hospital for a mental health evaluation. He was judged fit to be held in custody and spent four months in detention before being granted bail.
Sentencing
In court, Arif pled guilty to making a false statement about a ‘plan, proposal, attempt, conspiracy or threat to destroy, damage or endanger the safety of the aircraft.
A 14-month suspended prison term was imposed to be served as an intensive correction order in the community. The order expires in February 2026, provided Arif does not re-offend and complies with orders for mental health treatment, including by a psychiatrist.
2PAXfly Takeout
The experience for the passengers onboard flight MH122 must have been harrowing. I can understand why some passengers wanted a storming of the plane hoping to shorten their period of perceived detention. However, in this case, the cautious approach resulted in no deaths or injuries. That stands as one test of the effectiveness of the approach.
There are no winners in these situations. The crew and passengers are all victims of this event.
While we can screen for physical things like bombs and guns, detecting psychological stresses in passengers is a different matter.
Congratulations to the authorities for handling this to minimise potential deaths and injuries. My greatest compassion for the passengers and crew who experienced this anxiety-provoking incident. My hope is that they have recovered. I also sympathise with the perpetrator, who must have been under extreme pressure to resort to such behaviour.
I think the sentence is appropriate for this unfortunate incident.
*Malaysia.
Thanks Josh. I constantly make that mistake. I have corrected the airline’s name in the story now.