By Jonty Mark
TV star David Vlok was involved in an altercation with a first-class passenger on a South African Airways flight to London after the man delayed its departure from Johannesburg International Airport on Thursday night by demanding that two Muslim passengers be taken off the plane.
The passenger threatened to have Vlok charged with assault and arrested when he arrived in London.
The flight was then further delayed after there was a fire on an Egypt Air plane on the runway and only took off at about midday on Friday.
Vlok, who stars in M-Net's Egoli, was on his way to London with Comrades hero Bruce Fordyce, where they are to run the London Marathon on Sunday.
The flight, which was due to take off at 8.45pm, was delayed when the first-class passenger complained that two Indian passengers - South African businessman Zane Jabwat and his colleague - were "suspicious".
The two were then asked by the pilot to leave the aircraft and to present their passports again.
Jabwat was fuming on Friday. "We were taken off as being terrorist subjects on the basis our being Muslims," he said.
"I have spoken to my attorneys. The man in first class gave an ultimatum to the pilot that if we were not searched, he was not prepared get on the flight.
"I don't understand why the pilot didn't ask him (the first-class passenger) to leave the plane if he didn't want to fly with us," said an angry Jabwat.
Speaking at the airport on Friday, Vlok said: "I'm not sure whether I'll be running the marathon or spending a week in a London prison."
Vlok admitted that he and the first-class passenger had "walked into each other". "I was only doing what everyone else on the plane wanted to do."
SAA communications officer Rich Mkhondo said he had not been told of the incident on the London flight.
"We have to get a report from the captain, from the senior flight attendant and from operations control," Mkhondo said.
According to civil aviation law, the pilot is in complete control of an aircraft and can ask anyone to leave an aircraft.
"It is absolutely at his (the pilot's) discretion," said Trevor Davids, communications manager for the Civil Aviation Department.
SAA refused to reveal the identity of the complaining passenger.
There were other unforeseen circumstances, because shortly before 9pm, an Egypt Air flight to Cairo caught fire on the main runway at Johannesburg International Airport.
Although no one was injured and all passengers were evacuated safely from the Egyptian plane, the main runway remained blocked.
The runway was only cleared at midday on Friday.
The Airports Company of South Africa (Acsa) said it was satisfied with the way Thursday night's fire was dealt with by all parties involved.
At Johannesburg International on Friday morning, about 600 SAA passengers were still waiting to take off.
"They (SAA) didn't announce our flight was going to be delayed overnight until after midnight last (Thursday) night," said Bob Maich, a marketing manager who finally got on his way to Frankfurt at about 1pm.
"I was lucky enough to get a hotel room, but when we arrived this morning, there were about 200 people sleeping on the airport floor. We have been treated like animals and when we asked for compensation, (SAA was) completely disinterested."
The passengers on the Egypt Air flight tried to get compensation for their luggage, burnt in the fire.
"They (Egypt Air) said we could get on the next flight to Cairo and offered us R600 for luggage," said Mark Lynch, father of passenger Wesley Lynch.
"But we spent R6 000 on luggage and suitcases. Now we have to fill in a claims form, and wait 21 days for a response."