Airline Thanks 8-Year-Old Who Calmed Unruly Flier

An 8-year-old boy from England is winning praise—and free flight vouchers—for his help in calming a disruptive passenger and preventing a flight from being diverted in midair, reports the BBC. Phoenix Rose and his father, James, were en route home to Manchester from Turkey on a Jet2 flight when a female passenger began berating and threatening flight attendants who confiscated alcohol she had brought aboard, reports the Manchester Evening News. The flight crew warned her they would have to divert the flight if she didn't calm down, and James Rose then suggested they move her between him and his son.

Phoenix, a big Manchester United fan, then set to work: He pulled out his soccer cards, showed her Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, started singing, and asked about her family and children. Over time, James said, the woman's voice softened and she calmed down for the rest of the three-and-a-half-hour flight. The boy was "an absolute superstar," one passenger tells the Manchester paper. The pilot shook the pair's hands upon landing, and the airline gave them flight vouchers and publicly thanked them for their "compassion and kindness." The woman was taken into custody upon arrival in Manchester.