An 'intoxicated' passenger bit an attendant on a flight from Japan to Seattle, forcing the plane to turn around

• A flight from Tokyo to Seattle made a U-turn after a passenger bit a flight attendant, ANA said.
• The American passenger was "intoxicated" and acting in an "unsafe" manner, the airline told BI.

An "intoxicated" American man on an All Nippon Airways (ANA) flight from Tokyo to Seattle bit a female cabin crew member, prompting the plane to return to Japan, the airline said.

ANA said that a 55-year-old US citizen, whose name has not been disclosed, bit the arm of a female flight attendant during the flight, according to the Tokyo-based news agency Kyodo News.

Other crew members had to restrain him, the news agency said.

The female flight attendant sustained minor injuries, but no other passengers were hurt, an airline spokesperson told CNN.

A spokesperson for ANA told Business Insider that it took "all necessary actions" to ensure the safety and security of passengers and employees.

The spokesperson said that the passenger being "intoxicated" and acting in an "unsafe manner" led to the decision to return to Haneda Airport, and to turn him over to the local police there.

According to flight-tracking data from FlightRadar24, ANA 118 departed Haneda at 9:47 p.m. local time on Tuesday but made a U-turn over the Pacific Ocean just over an hour into the journey.

The man was arrested on suspicion of causing injury upon landing, Kyodo News reported.

It added that the passenger denied the allegation and told police that he had no recollection of the incident because he had taken a sleeping pill.

The flight was later rescheduled to Wednesday, the airline spokesperson said.

Last Saturday, another ANA flight had to return to its departure airport after a crack was discovered in the window of the cockpit. There were no injuries.