The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is suing an American Airlines passenger who caused a scene mid-flight, eventually forcing flight attendants to duct tape her to a seat.
The woman reportedly attempted to open the front cabin door during the flight, sparking chaos throughout the cabin.
Fox News reported San Antonio’s Heather Wells, 34, bit, kicked, and spat at staff and fellow passengers about an hour into a July 2021 flight from Dallas to Charlotte, North Carolina.
The plane had departed around midnight after a three-hour delay.
Flight attendants duct-taped the apparently unhinged woman to an airplane seat after she allegedly attacked the crew and tried to open the aircraft door.
She had not been identified by name until now.
Now-deleted video posted on social media showed the gray-haired woman with silver duct tape over her mouth and her arms and body seemingly taped to the seat, TMZ first reported
She’s depicted in the footage posted on TikTok screaming “You! You! You!” as passengers exited American Airlines Flight 1774 past her.
Flight attendants calmly nodded their goodbyes to the passengers as they departed.
TikTok user @lol.ariee explained the situation in a follow up post, stating flight attendants began turning on the lights around 1:30 am.
“We see all flight attendants running up and down the aisles, frantically kind of like whispering to each other,” she recapped.
“It was just kind of like chaos and no one knows what’s going on.”
“Then we’re gradually starting to hear more and more screaming, and we’re like, ‘Wait a minute.’”
A flight attendant allegedly told the TikToker that a woman with an apparent mental issue “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!’”
“I guess it took all five flight attendants to subdue her and like literally take her down so,” the TikToker user continued. “They pretty much took her down, put her in the seat and duct taped her.”
U.S. Attorney Jaime Esparza on behalf of the FAA is now seeking to collect $81,950 in civil penalties from Wells, The San Antonio Express reported.
Wells was fined this record amount back in 2022, marking the highest penalty ever imposed on an individual passenger.
The outlet stated this fine came at a time when airlines and regulators were grappling with a surge of unruly passengers disrupting flights.
The lawsuit alleges Wells violated federal aviation rules by trying to access the flight cabin, interfering with the duties of the flight crew, threatening them, and posing an imminent threat to the safety of the aircraft and its occupants.
It read: “Over an hour into the flight, and after ordering a Jack Daniels (neat) during the beverage service, Defendant became increasingly agitated and ‘wanted out’ of the plane.”
“She left her seat and began moving and/or running toward the rear of the aircraft, before going to her knees in the aisle.”
“She remained there shortly, talking incoherently to passengers, before crawling back toward the main cabin.”
The suit continues to describe the chaotic moment, introducing that Wells told a flight attendant she would “hurt him” if he didn’t move out of her way.
She then pushed the flight attendant aside and moved to the front of the aircraft, attempting to grab the handle of the front cabin door while screaming and yelling profanities.
The Express highlighted that Wells has been summoned to answer the lawsuit, and she has been banned from Fort Worth-based American Airlines flights.
The post American Airlines Passenger Who Was Duct Taped To Seat After Trying to Open Cabin Door Mid-Flight in Unhinged Tirade Sued appeared first on Resist the Mainstream.
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Author: Jordyn M.
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