Assault on flight attendant ‘one of the worst’ in airline’s history, American Airlines CEO says
The FBI is investigating a passenger accused of assaulting a flight attendant on an Orange Countybound flight during what an airline CEO described as “one of the worst displays of unruly behavior we’ve ever witnessed.”
The attack on a Wednesday night American Airlines flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport to John Wayne Airport forced the crew to divert to Denver International Airport, where the man was taken off the plane and placed in custody and the flight attendant received medical attention.
The incident comes as carriers have raised concerns about an uptick in violence in the air as flights have increased following the worst of the pandemic, while the FAA earlier this year announced a zero-tolerance policy toward unruly passengers.
Mask mandates have led to well-publicized meltdowns by other travelers, but the motivation for the attack on Wednesday’s flight appears to have been something else.
Julie Hedrick, president of the Association of Professional
Flight Attendants, told the Washington Post that the passenger punched the flight attendant in the face after she accidentally bumped him and immediately apologized. The flight attendant suffered broken bones in her face, Hedrick told the Post.
Law enforcement officials have released little information.
Officials with the Denver Police Department declined to identify the passenger who was taken into custody, saying the FBI had taken over the investigation. FBI officials confirmed the investigation is ongoing, but said no arrests have been made.
American Airlines CEO
Doug Parker in a video released Thursday said the passenger “violently and physically assaulted” a flight attendant.
“Let me assure you, American Airlines will not tolerate air flight misconduct of any kind, particularly toward our crew members or airport team,” Parker said. “As to this individual, I can guarantee you he will never be allowed to fly American Airlines again.
“But that is not enough,” he said. “This type of behavior has to stop. And the best deterrent is aggressive criminal prosecution.”
The CEO said American Airlines will do everything they can to make sure the
man is prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. He also said they are working with the FAA, which he noted has the power to fine disruptive passengers more than $50,000.
“This will not just end with a travel ban,” Parker said.
Video footage showed passengers booing and cursing the man as he was removed from the plane. The footage also showed officers walking a tall, thin man wearing a hoodie and sweat pants handcuffed through the Denver airport.
After the flight arrived at John Wayne Airport, one of the passengers, Mackenzie Rose, told a freelance videographer that she photographed the man after seeing him sitting off to the side while she exited the plane. Rose said she didn’t see the alleged attack, since she was seated in a different part of the plane, but recalled the cabin lights coming on halfway through the flight and the captain asking for two able-bodied men to come to the front of the craft. Soon after, the passengers were told they were going to land in Denver.
Rose said she heard from another airline employee that the flight attendant was punched twice in the face and her nose was broken. But neither law enforcement nor the airline has confirmed the extent of the flight attendant’s injuries.
The airline CEO acknowledged that the incident comes in the wake of less high-profile incidents of disruptive behavior as passengers return to the skies.
“While the world reopening brings many positive aspects, there has been a very disturbing downside,” Parker said. “We’ve all seen the reports of unruly behavior, people showing extreme disrespect, anger and impatiance toward each other. While that is certainly not the case on the overwhelming majority of flights, this is happening far too often.”