A Southwest Airlines passenger has been charged with two counts of assault after he “demanded” a kiss from a flight attendant.
The alleged incident happened during a one-hour flight from Palm Springs, California to Las Vegas in October last year.
Twenty minutes before the plane landed, the male passenger allegedly got out of his seat and moved towards a flight attendant sitting in a jump seat and “demanded” a kiss.
It is also alleged that the suspect proceeded to grab the female crew member and tried to get her to go into the toilet cubicle with him.
As outlined in the complaint filed by an FBI agent with the US District Court of Nevada on Friday 23 June: “(The victim) got up from her jump seat, at which point (the suspect) put his arms on her shoulders and demanded a kiss again before stating that he was going to have a panic attack if (the crew member) did not go into the bathroom with him.”
The flight attendant was then able to push the passenger away and used the phone in the cabin to call for help from a fellow crew member.
The court papers state that the flight attendant “felt her life was in serious danger.”
When another flight attendant came to assist, she saw the passenger had his hands on her colleague’s shoulders.
After approaching the man and trying to calm him down, the passenger then “grabbed” the second flight attendant’s shoulders and said he needed her colleague to “kiss him to calm down”.
The complaint states that the second flight attendant was “scared for her life” and “concerned for other passengers.”
Three male passengers who were travelling with the suspect intervened and were able to “physically restrain” him ahead of the flight landing at Harry Reid International Airport in Las Vegas.
There were 100 people on the flight, including three crew members.
The Independent has contacted Southwest Airlines for comment.
