Delta passenger facing $9,000 fine after causing flight to return to MSP
A passenger traveling from Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport is facing a $9,000 fine for failing to comply with crew directions.
The incident happened on Dec. 22, 2020, on a Delta Air Lines flight bound for Philadelphia.
The FAA says she got out of her seat during takeoff and began walking up and down the aisle. She repeatedly said she wanted to get off the plane. Multiple flight attendants told her to return to her seat and buckle her seatbelt, but she refused to comply.
The flight was forced to return to Minneapolis.
The FAA announced the woman's civil penalty Wednesday along with three other passengers on various airlines who were also fined in connection to incidents earlier this year. Two of the passengers were fined $16,500 and $32,750, respectively, for allegedly assaulting flight attendants who instructed them to obey cabin crew instructions.
The FAA has a zero-tolerance policy for those who cause disturbances on flights or fail to obey flight crew instructions. The policy stems from an increase in violent and unruly passengers in the past year, including those who refused to comply with face mask policies.
The TSA recently extended the face mask requirement at airports and on airplanes, as well as across all transportation networks in the U.S., until Sept. 13.
