据路透社12月30日援引《每日邮报》的报道说，这架空中客车飞机是由英格兰北部飞往西班牙度假胜地特内里费岛的。在机组方面拒绝向其提供更多的酒水后，这名乘客开始大肆辱骂相关人员，于是机长便决定将此人"丢弃"到大西洋上一个名叫圣波尔图的小岛上。该岛由裸露的火山岩形成，长、宽仅为10英里和4英里。
按照《每日邮报》的说法，当这架飞机在该岛上降落时，当地警方早已在机场上恭候多时。预计这名不守规矩的乘客将于明年1月份出庭受审。
圣波尔图岛上的机场是冷战时期的产物，北约曾考虑将该岛建成一个前哨基地，以保卫欧洲南部通道。由于岛上只有6家旅馆和区区几处沙滩，所以外来游客对圣波尔图岛一向知之甚少。他们大都会蜂拥涌向面积大很多的马德拉岛，从圣岛乘轮渡前往那里只需两小时。
报道说，皇家航空公司的这趟航班比原定时间晚了将近4个小时才抵达目的地。那位倒霉的乘客则不得不赶到马德拉岛换乘另一班飞机，继续过被耽搁了的假期。
A drunken passenger on a holiday flight from England to Spain was dropped at a tiny island off the African coast after he swore at the cabin crew, a newspaper reported Friday. The plane's captain decided to leave the man at Porto Santo, a volcanic outcrop in the Atlantic, after he became abusive when he was refused more alcohol, the Daily Mail said.
The Airbus plane, heading from northern England to the Spanish holiday island of Tenerife, diverted to the Portuguese island, which is just 10 miles long and four miles wide.
Police met the man at the airport. He is due to appear in court in mainland Portugal in January, the newspaper said.
The island's airport is a legacy of the Cold War when NATO considered making Porto Santo a frontline base to guard Europe's southern approaches.
With only half a dozen hotels and a few sandy beaches, Porto Santo is little known to most tourists who flock to the nearby, larger island of Madeira, a two-hour ferry ride away.
The Monarch Airlines plane landed nearly fours late in Tenerife. The passenger had a belated start to his holiday after going to Madeira to take another flight, the Mail said.
No one at Monarch could be reached for comment.
