A wealthy recruitment director broke down in tears as he was sentenced to 15 months in prison for subjecting cabin crew to a torrent of racist abuse and death threats after a champagne-fuelled binge during an eight-hour flight.
Salman Iftikhar, 37, was flying first class with his wife and three children when he threatened and abused Virgin Atlantic staff on a flight from London Heathrow to Lahore.
During the ordeal at 39,000 feet, Iftikhar told stewardess Angie Walsh she would be dragged from her hotel room, gang raped and set alight. In another fit of rage a British traveller was punched after hurling homophobic abuse at air staff.
A fellow passenger, who filmed one of Iftikhar’s estimated 100 outbursts, can be heard saying “holy s**t” as Iftikhar accused Ms Walsh of racism, claiming: “You called me a p**i in front of everybody.”
Isleworth Crown Court heard how the incident unfolded on 7 February 2023. Prosecutor Abdul Kapadia said Iftikhar began drinking champagne at the onboard bar before helping himself to ice with his hands. When challenged by crew, he became aggressive and started filming them.
Escalating aggression
Told to return to his seat, Iftikhar responded: “Don’t tell me what to do you racist f***ing b***h. I know where you are from in Cardiff.” When the seat belt sign was switched on, he shouted: “Look at this b***h having the seat belt sign on when there was no turbulence. What the f *** is this b***h doing?”
Returning to his seat, he continued his tirade, calling Ms Walsh a “f***ing b***h.” The situation escalated further as cabin crew considered diverting the flight to Turkey. When informed of the possible diversion, Iftikhar replied: “I don’t care. F*** it, go to Turkey. I have contacts.”
Despite pleas from his wife and distress from his children, Iftikhar’s aggression did not subside. He pushed his wife away when she tried to speak with staff and threatened to fight crew members. He grabbed flight attendant Tommy Merchant and said: “Do you know who I am? F**** off. You should know who I am. Come on you heard me. Let’s go right now.”
Iftikhar then squeezed Ms Walsh’s hand and hurled more racist abuse at her, calling her a “f***ing white Welsh c**t.” He also threatened to blow up the Avari Lahore Hotel where cabin crew were due to stay, stating he knew their hotel and room numbers.
He told Ms Walsh: “You will be dead on the floor of your hotel,” before adding: “The white sheep sh**ging b****h will be dead. The floor of your hotel will be blown up and it will disappear.” He went on: “You will be dragged by your hair from your room and gang raped and set on fire.” His children cried throughout as they begged him to stop.
Victim’s statement
Ms Walsh later revealed she could not sleep during her overnight stay at the hotel after learning Iftikhar’s threats matched their real accommodation details.
No action was taken against Iftikhar when the plane landed in Pakistan. He was eventually arrested at his £900,000 home in Iver, Buckinghamshire, on March 16 this year.
Ms Walsh attended court with her sister Claire, both in their Virgin Atlantic uniforms. In a statement read aloud, Ms Walsh described how she had taken 14 months off work as a result of the incident. She said: “I feel like what happened that day has changed my life enormously… But I don’t feel strong enough anymore. I was abused for eight hours and 15 mins. It has broken me.”
She added: “There was nowhere for me to go… There was one moment where I felt I could not cope. I went into the cockpit and had a meltdown.”
Iftikhar admitted making threats to kill and racially aggravated harassment towards Ms Walsh but denied assaulting Mr Merchant or threatening him with death.
‘Appalling record of misconduct’
His defence barrister Ben Walker-Nolan said Iftikhar suffered from ‘amnesia blood loss’ and had longstanding issues with drugs and alcohol which he had not addressed.
The court heard Iftikhar has six prior convictions from 15 offences including common assault and drink driving—most recently being fined £3,000 after being caught drink driving under the influence of cannabis in his Rolls Royce in 2021.
Family members wept as Judge Recorder Annabel Darlow KC told Iftikhar: “Your threats to kill were made in the presence of children… These were threats made with significant violence… This was a sustained incident which involved repeated racist abuse to Ms Walsh… You have a lengthy and appalling record of misconduct.”
Iftikhar appeared in court wearing a grey suit with a pink shirt and yellow tie as he wept upon hearing his sentence. LinkedIn lists him as founder and director of recruitment firm Staffing Match.