These photographs taken by shocked travellers aboard a Thai AirAsia flight reveal the dramatic moment a female flight attendant was scalded with hot water by an unruly passenger.

The female passenger, from China, attacked the flight attendant with a cup of noodles in a violent row that began when she found out that she wouldn't be sitting next to her boyfriend on a charter flight from Bangkok to Nanjing, China.

Passengers pulled out their smartphones as the mid-air drama unfolded in front of them, snapping pictures as the injured flight attendant covered her face and shouted in pain.

Additional photos show noodles all over the floor of one of the aisles and, once the plane landed, authorities boarding the aircraft to restore order and remove the passenger and her entourage.

The cabin erupted in chaos after the flight attendant was berated and splashed with hot water - even after a cabin crew member helped the couple change seats.

During the chaos a man believed to be the woman's boyfriend jumped out of his seat and angrily threatened to blow up the plane as the injured flight attendant was tended to by her co-workers.