A HOLIDAY company is searching for a heroic passenger who restrained a drunken man who attacked an air hostess on a packed holiday jet.

The attacker was with his girlfriend on a flight between Newcastle and Ibiza when they began to row.

The trouble began shortly after the plane took off from Newcastle on Saturday afternoon, when the couple started to argue.

As the argument continued, the man started drinking heavily from bottles of duty-free alcohol.

Staff confiscated his drink and he became violent, bending back the fingers of an air hostess.

He then started walking up and down the cabin demanding bottles of champagne.

He refused to sit down as the plane came in to land in Ibiza, then grabbed an air hostess's hair and pulled her to the floor.

Another passenger then got involved and clung on to the attacker and held him until police arrived.

Shaun Robinson, of Thomas Cook travel, said: "It was a very nasty experience for the cabin crew, and the woman concerned was very upset and traumatised."

He said the man had been drunk when he boarded the plane.

Although the incident happened abroad, it will be investigated by Northumbria police.

A spokesman said: "We will be investigating when an official complaint is made to us."

Thomas Cook is hoping to find the passenger who helped the hostess to reward him for his bravery.

* If you know who the passenger is, call The Northern Echo newsdesk on (01325) 505064.