Drunken Outburst on Plane Costs Passenger Jail Time, Six Figure Fine

Image: PHOTO: The outburst took place on Hawaiian Airlines. (photo via Flickr/Simon Sees)
Image: PHOTO: The outburst took place on Hawaiian Airlines. (photo via Flickr/Simon Sees)
Rich Thomaselli
by Rich Thomaselli
Last updated: 11:27 AM ET, Sat July 6, 2019

There's an old saying in sports that 'numbers don't lie.'

Well, here's a number that's not lying about what a drunken outburst aboard an airplane will cost you.

$172,000.

Kyong Chol Kim was sentenced this week to six months in jail and ordered to pay a fine of $172,000 after his drunken behavior aboard a Hawaiian Airlines flight in February forced the plane to turn around and make an emergency landing back in Honolulu.

The flight was heading to South Korea.

The six-figure fine represents what it cost the airline to turn the flight around, land back in Honolulu, and start all over again.

According to prosecutors, the 48-year old Kim apparently drank an entire bottle of whiskey before boarding the flight and caused an uproar on the plane, including pestering a child seated next to him and lunging at a flight attendant.

Fortunately, in addition to the crew, there were several members of the United States military onboard who helped subdue Kim while the pilots turned back to Honolulu.


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Rich Thomaselli

Rich Thomaselli

Associate Writer

Editor Associate Writer true 9281 14744 Rich Thomaselli has written for TravelPulse since 2014 and has been a professional journalist for nearly 40 years. His work has appeared in USA Today, the New York Times and New York Yankees publications. He is an 11-time writ

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