Feds fine unruly and maskless airplane passengers as violent incidents increase

Federal authorities are planning to fine two unmasked and unruly passengers accused of hitting and grabbing flight attendants amid a rash of disruptive and sometimes violent incidents on board planes. One passenger accused of grabbing and striking two flight attendants during a February flight faces a fine of $32,750, the FAA said on Wednesday. A passenger on a different flight is accused of hitting "one of the flight attendants with his bags" and faces a $16,500 fine. Altogether, the FAA on Wednesday disclosed four new fines against passengers from among 1,300 reports of passenger misbehavior sent in by flight crews in the past three months alone, a spokesman said. Investigators have so far identified potential violations in about 260 of those cases, and the four new fines bring the number of cases the FAA has described publicly since late 2020 to 13. Reports from flight crews of unruly passengers used to be so infrequent that the FAA did not tally them, a spokesman said. But alarm grew within the agency as incidents appeared to climb. Instead of one report of a troublesome passenger every few days, flight crews were calling in with multiple issues daily, the spokesman said. At the same time, the number of passengers is significantly depressed -- still 40% below pre-pandemic levels, according to air carrier group Airlines for America.<br/>