A woman who was suspected of having a mental health episode aboard an American Airlines flight was captured on a now-deleted TikTok video being duct-taped to her seat, with a piece of tape covering her mouth.
The incident took place on July 6, 2021, on an American Airlines flight from Dallas, Texas, to Charlotte, North Carolina. Adding to the woman’s problems is that she now faces the largest fine on record handed out by the Federal Aviation Administration — $81,950, according to the New York Post.
The troubled woman allegedly attacked the flight crew and tried to open a door mid-flight in a desperate attempt to get off the plane, and was bound to her seat with duct tape.
The TikTok user who recorded the incident before deleting the video said that right before landing, a crew member said the woman “had an outburst and like, had the urge to get off the plane.”
“And she was saying, ‘I need to get off this plane,’ and she went up to the exits and started banging on the doors, saying, ‘You need to let me off this plane!’” the social media user further stated.
American Airlines told The Post that the woman assaulted a flight attendant, which included biting the employee after she “attempted to open the forward boarding door.” The airline said she was restrained “for the safety and security of other customers and our crew.”
The unhinged woman on the American Airlines flight last July who hit and bit flight attendants and other passengers, and then got duct taped to her seat, is hit with an $82,000 fine. pic.twitter.com/leH4beeFjO
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) April 13, 2022
The newspaper noted that the previously highest FAA fine was $77,272, levied against a woman aboard a Delta flight from Las Vegas to Atlanta on July 16, 2021.
“The passengers have 30 days after receiving the FAA’s letter to respond to the agency, which said that its zero tolerance policy against unruly behavior and its public awareness campaign have decreased such cases by almost 60%,” the Post reported.
The Federal Aviation Administration said in a January press release: “Passengers who interfere with, physically assault, or threaten to physically assault aircraft crew or anyone else on an aircraft face stiff penalties, including fines of up to $35,000 and imprisonment. This dangerous behavior can distract, disrupt, and threaten crewmembers’ safety functions.”
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Tom Tillison grew up in Maryland before moving to Central Florida as a young teen. It is in the Sunshine State that he honed both his passion for politics and his writing skills. Tillison also contributes to BizPac Review.
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