Over-60 passenger’s comment gets him kicked off flight

Flight cabins can get incredibly chilly. So much so that many flights have blankets on offer for passengers who want to rug up during the flight. 

But when a 66-year-old man on a Hawaiian Airlines flight was told that a blanket would set him back $12, he was not at all happy. 

Unwilling, or unable, to fork out the money for the blanket, even though he was feeling particularly cold, led the man to take out his frustration on the flight cabin crew. 

The man said he “would like to take someone behind the woodshed for this,” spokesman for the police department at Los Angeles International Airport, Officer Rob Pedregon, said.

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It was then decided to divert the Honolulu-bound flight to Los Angeles where police were waiting to talk to the man.

“Diverting a flight is clearly not our first choice, but our crew felt it was necessary in this case to divert to Los Angeles and deplane the passenger before beginning to fly over the Pacific Ocean,” Hawaiian Airlines spokesperson Alison Croyle told CBS Los Angeles. 

Police later determined that the man was not a serious threat and he was released without any charges being made. 

“I thought it was ridiculous,” passenger Eileen Berstrom said. “First of all, it costs $12,000 for them to land here, and it’s a $12 blanket.”

What do you think about this incident? Did the cabin crew overreact or were they right to worry? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.