Laura Bushney ‘petrified’ by alleged mid-air assault and says she recorded steward pleading with her not to report him

This article is more than 6 years old

This article is more than 6 years old

A Malaysia Airlines chief steward allegedly sexually assaulted an Australian woman during a flight to France and then pleaded with her not to report him, she told Australian media.

Laura Bushney, who lives in Perth, said she had been “petrified” when the steward allegedly began touching her under the guise of calming her nerves as she was afraid of flying on the disaster-prone carrier.

Earlier this month the airline issued a statement acknowledging that a cabin crew member had been detained in France over the sexual assault allegations on 4 August.

Bushney told Channel 7 on Sunday evening that three hours into the half-full flight from Kuala Lumpur to Paris the steward had sat beside her and allegedly began massaging her legs.

The 26-year-old also claims he later assaulted her, taking advantage of her vulnerability owing to her fear of flying.

“I just keep saying why didn’t I scream, why didn’t I shout? Why didn’t I stop it? I am a strong person because I can do that, I know I can,” Bushney said. “When I was in the moment I couldn’t. I felt so scared, so petrified.”

But Bushney recorded part of the alleged attack on a mobile phone wrapped in a scarf next to her pillow.

In the recording, which was played on Channel 7, she can be heard whispering what he was doing to her. “He’s massaging my legs,” she can be heard saying. “I’m so scared, I just want to get off this plane.”

Bushney was reportedly seated in row 81, which was vacant except for a man six seats away on the far side of the plane. After the encounter she told a passenger in front of her, Canadian Sophie Lachance, what had happened.

“Somebody touched my arm ... and I remember I woke up and I saw her face full of tears and she was sobbing really, really strong,” Lachance told Channel 7. “She told me that this man did something to her.”

The steward returned to where Bushney was seated and can be seen pleading with her that his “intentions were good” on the recording she made.

The case is the latest setback for Malaysia’s struggling national carrier, which was struck by twin tragedies this year when one of its passenger jets, flight MH370, went missing and another, MH17, was shot down.

In its statement Malaysia Airlines vowed to assist French authorities in their investigation, adding “the safety, comfort and wellbeing of our passengers is always our highest priority”.

But Bushney told Channel 7 she was disappointed with the airline’s response to her complaint, claiming it had not contacted her since.