Air rage and disruptions in the air have been a problem for almost as long as air travel has been around. The first documented case of air rage happened in 1947 and in some instances have been so bad that people have died (like this Southwest passenger, who wound up being killed by his fellow passengers, in response to his own air rage).
Of course, disruptions in the air have increased to the nth degree since COVID – along the lines of close to 6,000 of them this year. Many have to do with the federal mandate to wear a mask on board. But others are because of passengers who are drinking too much alcohol before getting on their plane (or drinking their own while on board, despite it being against the law).
While on a message board not long ago, I saw someone lamenting that they should have more air marshals in the air. That was the catalyst for my post about why that isn’t realistic. However there’s now been an incident on a plane where an air marshal was present…and look at what happened.
A couple of weeks ago, Delta flight 342, from Washington D.C. to Los Angeles, had to be diverted to Oklahoma City after a passenger became unruly. According to the TSA, “An intoxicated passenger became disruptive, causing a security concern.” The problems began about 3 hours into the flight.
Said intoxicated person, identified by police as a 35-year-old rapper named Ariel Pennington (his stage name is Azar3RRDeye [pronounced Azar third eye]), became combative on the flight and assaulted, not only a flight attendant but an air marshal who was also on the plane.
Combative passenger on @Delta flight assaults flight attendant and Air Marshal, according to OKC police. Flight #342 from Washington D.C. to Los Angeles was diverted to Oklahoma City where police arrested the passenger. Story: https://t.co/3u0zKJrOQs pic.twitter.com/RHnZX60z3M
— Eric Resendiz (@abc7eric) December 10, 2021
The air marshal was eventually able to take over, zip tie him and hold him until the plane diverted to Oklahoma City.
Once the plane landed, Pennington was arrested on charges of disorderly conduct and public drunkenness. He was released from the Oklahoma City Detention Center on a $334 bond less than 24 hours later.
Pennington has a long arrest history – DUI, DWI, assault, etc. The FBI is investigating and Pennington could now face federal charges for allegedly assaulting the air marshal.
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1 comment
Most of these problematic posters seem to all have something in common.