Comedian and television host Wil Anderson has been released by police following his arrest at Wagga Wagga airport.

Police say the 43-year-old was arrested on Saturday after they were called to the regional NSW airport over a “disruptive passenger”.

In a since-deleted tweet on Saturday afternoon, Anderson said: “Big f*** you to the crew at Qantas for their no help today. Sorry Wagga if I can’t walk when I get off the plane today”.

Channel 7 tweeted from the Wagga show that the incident was sparked by a dispute with cabin staff about seating on the plane and Anderson’s desire to sit by an emergency exit.

Reports and tweets suggested the Gruen compere insisted he had a bad back and needed the emergency row’s extra leg room.

A Qantas spokeswoman said a passenger was met by police on arrival after “behaving disruptively and refusing to follow crew instructions”.

“To ensure all of our flights are safe and comfortable for our passengers we don’t tolerate disruptive behaviour onboard,” she said in a statement.

The incident delayed the start of the show, but gave online wags the opportunity to crack wise.

The comedian was held at the local police station for several hours ahead of his sold-out show at the Wagga Wagga Civic Centre.

The Seven Network tweeted that when Anderson did take to the stage, he said “Sorry I’m late. I got arrested”.

A subsequent from the Nine Network station in the Riverina quoted the gagster as saying nothing would come of the incident.

Mr Anderson told Channel Nine he was pacing on the plane due to a bad back, and believes his actions were misinterpreted.

“I’m very confident and happy that the whole thing was based on a misunderstanding and I think we’re going to sort it all out and I think once everybody has heard their sides of the story, that we’ll all be on the same page,” he said.