Tampa man calls passengers ‘blue-eyed white devils,’ threatens to take down plane: police
TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A Tampa man was put in a headlock, removed from a flight and jailed for being verbally abusive to passengers and threatening to take down the plane at Tampa International Airport, court documents said.
Airport police said Shail Patel, 29, was taken off an American Airlines plane preparing to fly from Tampa to Philadelphia on Tuesday.
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According to the report, Patel was drunk when he boarded the flight and started “antagonizing passengers, calling flight attendants names, threatening passengers and aggressively moving through the aircraft.”
He called them “blue-eyed white devils” and threatened to “take this plane down with all you mother f— on it,” the report said.
Police said Patel slapped one passenger on the hand and face and spit on them.
Video obtained by WFLA appears to show Patel being put in a headlock by a fellow passenger before being led off the plane.
A flight attendant used the plane’s PA system to ask if there were off-duty officers on board who could help. Police said six off-duty law enforcement officers were able to restrain Patel and take him off the aircraft.
Patel was arrested on two counts of battery and one count of disorderly intoxication. He is being held at the Hillsborough County Jail on a $2,150 bond.
American Airlines provided WFLA with the following statement:
“Prior to departure of American Airlines flight 2506 with service from Tampa (TPA) to Philadelphia (PHL), law enforcement was requested to the aircraft due to a disturbance in the cabin involving a disruptive customer.”
“We thank our team for their professionalism and apologize to our customers for the inconvenience.”
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According to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), there have been over 400 reports of unruly passengers in 2024. In 2023, there were over 2,000.
Those who disrupt flights risk not only substantial fines, but also federal criminal prosecution and jail time.
“Immediately they’re gone,” Aviation Expert John Cox said. “That’s a violation of federal law, usually it’s a violation of a local state law.”
Even if you appear drunk, the airline has the right to kick you off the plane, Cox said.
“The wording of the Federal Aviation regulation is if a person appears intoxicated, they’re not to be boarded on the airplane and they certainly can’t fly,” he said.
At the end of the day, Cox said it all comes down to the captain.
“The captain has absolute authority as to having somebody removed, particularly if they’ve made a threat or anything like that,” he said. “Security is called and police take them off.”
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