Unruly Passenger Attacks Flight Attendant

Santa Ana, CA (WorkersCompensation.com) – On Wednesday, prosecutors said a California man was arrested after attacking a flight attendant and trying to strangle them mid-flight.

According to a press release from the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Central District of California, Charles Angela Salva, 30, of Fremont, Cal., was onboard Frontier Airlines Flight 3581 from Santa Ana to San Francisco International Airport. Shortly after takeoff, while the airplane was climbing and under 10,000 feet, flight attendants noticed that oxygen masks in one of the rows in the middle of the airplane were out of the overhead compartment. Salva, they discovered, had pulled the masks down and gotten his hand stuck in the process, the US Attorney’s office alleged.

Officials said Salva began yelling obscenities at flight attendants and screamed, “We’re all going to hell,” and “This plane is going down!” When flight attendants tried to restrain him. Salva, officials alleged, grabbed at some of the other passengers on the plane before running toward the rear of the airplane.

When the flight attendants reached him, Salva attempted to choke one of the flight attendants, and pushed another flight attendant. According to the police report, Salva threatened to kill everyone. Passengers on the plane tried to help restrain Salva, but he broke out of the flex cuffs flight attendants had placed him in. During the attempt to restrain him, Salva kicked one of the flight attendants several times.

Eventually, Salva was restrained with a seat belt and the flight was diverted to Ontario International Airport because flight attendants did not feel safe trying to put Salva back in his seat, and feared he would get free again.

At least one passenger told officials that Salva seemed to be suffering from claustrophobia and acted like “he wanted to get off the plane.”

Officials arrested Salva when the flight landed and he was charged with interference with flight crew members and attendants. If convicted, he faces up to 20 years in federal prison.

The flight attendant that was choked and the flight attendant that was kicked required medical attention and were treated for their injuries.

Frontier Airlines confirmed the incident “involving a passenger who physically assaulted members of the flight crew and had to be restrained, forcing the flight to divert to Ontario, California.”

"We extend our utmost appreciation to the flight crew for their professionalism and to the other passengers who assisted during the incident, as well as local and federal law enforcement, and the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Central District of California, for their efforts to ensure justice," the airline said in a statement.

The incident comes as the Federal Aviation Administration continues to crackdown on unruly passengers since the number of incidents of violence against flight attendants reach a peak in 2021. That year, nearly 6,000 incidents of unruly passengers were reported to the FAA.

On August 21, 2024, the FAA announced that it had referred another 43 unruly passenger cases to the Federal Bureau of Investigation for criminal prosecution review over the past year.

The goal, officials said, is to ensure that unruly airline passengers are held accountable for their actions through criminal prosecution. Working closely with the FBI, and other agencies, the FAA has forwarded more than 310 cases of the most serious cases of unruly passengers for criminal review.

“Dangerous passengers put everyone at risk—and the Biden-Harris Administration has been clear that those who disrupt flights will be held accountable,” U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said. “Unruly travelers face stiff fines from the FAA and possible criminal prosecution too.”

Passengers face up to $37,000 per incident, officials said, as well as jail time.

“There’s absolutely no excuse for unruly behavior,” FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker said. “It threatens the safety of everyone on board and we have zero tolerance for it.”

According to the FAA, the rate of unruly passenger incidents has dropped by more than 80 percent since reaching a peak in 2021. However, the FAA said, unacceptable behavior continues to occur. Airlines have reported more than 1,240 unruly passenger cases in 2024, the FAA said.

In June, the FAA said there had been 915 cases of unruly passengers between Jan. 1 and June 9, meaning nearly one third of the year’s cases happened during the summer busy travel season. The FAA said 106 of the passenger disturbance cases were due to intoxication.

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