Airline passenger threatens to ‘take this plane down,’ Florida cops say. He’s charged
An American Airlines passenger is accused of acting erratically and threatening to “take this plane down” when he was drunk on a flight, Florida authorities said.
The 29-year-old faces two counts of battery and one charge of disorderly intoxication, according to Hillsborough County records.
On March 19, the man boarded a flight in Tampa bound for Philadelphia, according to an arrest affidavit from the Tampa International Airport Police Department.
His eyes were bloodshot and his breath smelled of alcohol, police reported.
Shortly after boarding, he began yelling at passengers with slurred speech, police said.
He cursed out “blue eyed white devils,” and said he would take the plane down, according to police.
He’s became “aggressive,” police said, and is accused of spitting on someone and hitting someone in the face.
A series of videos posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, show the man using antisemitic slurs and pushing another passenger before he’s placed in a headlock and escorted off the flight.
He was arrested and booked in a Hillsborough County jail on a $2,150 bond, according to jail records.
McClatchy News reached out to the county’s public defender’s office for comment but could not immediately get in touch with his attorney on March 22.
“Prior to departure of American Airlines flight 2506 with service from Tampa (TPA) to Philadelphia (PHL), law enforcement was requested to the aircraft due to a disturbance in the cabin involving a disruptive customer,” a spokesperson for American Airlines said in an emailed statement to McClatchy News. “We thank our team for their professionalism and apologize to our customers for the inconvenience.”
The incident caused the flight to be delayed.
Jail records showed the man is from California and lives in Tampa.
This story was originally published March 22, 2024 at 1:19 PM with the headline "Airline passenger threatens to ‘take this plane down,’ Florida cops say. He’s charged."