An American Airlines flight from Tokyo to Dallas was diverted to Seattle Airport after a passenger assaulted a flight attendant and banged on the flight deck door because the phone charger at her seat stopped working.
Waka Suzuki was initially calm when she boarded the flight and kept herself busy by watching a movie on her mobile phone. However, roughly three to four hours into the 11 hour flight, she requested assistance from flight attendants because the phone charger at her seat didn’t appear to be working, according to court documents Paddle Your Own Kanoe.
Suzuki reportedly demanded flight attendants bring her items to resolve the issue and when they didn’t, Suzuki stands accused of running down the aircraft aisle from her seat in Economy towards the flight deck.
Another flight attendant attempted to stop her, but Suzuki allegedly pushed past her, stomped on her foot and continued going until she got to the flight deck and started banging on the door demanding help to resolve the phone charging issue, according to the court papers.
The Captain put the aircraft into Level Three Lockdown and informed the FAA of a threat to the aircraft while Suzuki was restrained with plastic flexicuffs. The flight was diverted to Seattle where it took 25 minutes to remove Suzuki from the plane.
Suzuki is accused of knowingly and intentionally interfering with flight crew members. The FBI is investigating.