FBI and FAA investigating unruly passenger removed from United flight, officials say
A woman removed by police from a United Airlines flight last month was not combative or disruptive, but the airline and federal agencies are investigating whether she should have been removed, federal officials said.
In a statement Tuesday, United said that a passenger removed by the FBI after a rowdy, disruptive flight was not arrested, but it promised to cooperate with the investigation.
The statement offered no details about the situation, but said the airline was investigating the removal and that it was making changes to its policies to ensure those with violent behavior don’t fly. An FAA official said the agency was also looking into the situation.
A spokesman for TSA declined to comment because the agency was not involved in the incident.
A passenger who identified herself only as M.D. said Tuesday afternoon that she had been traveling from Detroit to New York on March 12 and had a layover in Houston prior to the flight to Philadelphia.
She said that after the flight, about a half hour into it, the door to her seat was left open and she asked the flight attendants if there was anything wrong with the plane.
The flight attendants said there was a small fire in the seat and that a police officer removed the woman. She said that when she attempted to sit down, the officer tried to remove her from the plane.
She said she was taken into custody and later booked on a battery charge by the FBI, which then moved her to a jail. She was released after posting $2,500 bail.
A passenger who identified herself only as M.D. said Tuesday afternoon that she had been traveling from Detroit to New York on March 12 and had a layover in Houston prior to the flight to Philadelphia.
She said that after the flight, about a half hour into it, the door to her seat was left open and she asked the flight attendants if there was anything wrong with the plane.
The flight attendants said there was a small fire in the seat and that a police officer removed the woman. She said that when she attempted to sit down, the officer tried to remove her from the plane.
She said she was taken into custody and later booked on a battery charge by the FBI, which then moved her to a jail. She was released after posting $2,500 bail.
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