An obstreperous
airline passenger has been hit with a severe penalty after his disruptive
behavior forced a plane to turn around: reimbursing the airline for the cost of
wasted jet fuel.
The Australian
Federal Police (AFP) reported that the then-32-year-old man from Western
Australia caused a disturbance aboard a flight traveling from Perth to Sydney. He
became such a problem that the pilot was forced to divert the plane back to
Perth, which required dumping some fuel to land safely.
As a result, the
Perth Magistrate Court ruled that the passenger must pay $8,630 AUD
(approximately $5,786 USD) to cover the cost of the lost fuel. Additionally, he
was fined $6,055 AUD (4,059 USD) by the court, bringing the total financial
penalty to $14,685 AUD ($9,845 USD). That is one expensive trip to nowhere.
The man pled
guilty to charges of disorderly conduct aboard an aircraft and failure to
comply with safety instructions.
“This incident should serve as
a warning that criminal behavior on board can come at a heavy cost to the
offender,” Shona Davis, the AFP’s Acting Superintendent, said in a statement obtained
by CNN.
“It’s far simpler to obey the directions of airline staff than cause
unnecessary issues, which can end up hitting you in the hip pocket.”
Though the flight
took place on September 25, 2023, it took nearly a year for the case to be
resolved in court. The names of the passenger and the airline involved have not
been released, and the specific details of the man’s behavior also have not
been disclosed.
While forcing a disorderly
passenger to repay fuel costs may be out of the ordinary, fines and penalties for bad behavior aboard
flights have become more frequent in recent years.
In 2021, the U.S.
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) introduced a zero-tolerance policy for
unruly behavior on planes. That year, amid the pandemic, there was a sharp increase
in the number of airline customers being disobedient and even aggressive on
board their flights.
U.S. passengers
were hit with heavy fines for all sorts of bizarre behavior, including one who
attempted to breach the cockpit and ultimately had to be restrained, another
who punched a flight attendant in the face so badly that they had to go to the
hospital. The worst transgressions are sent to the Department of Justice for
resolution.
The highest
individual penalty for $40,823 was issued to a passenger who committed multiple
offenses during a single flight, including drunkenness and bringing their own
alcohol on board, trying to smoke marijuana in the lavatory and sexually
assaulting a flight attendant.
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