Narrative:

When I first noticed passenger, I asked what he was doing in the galley. He said he wanted some wine or beer. He smelled strongly of alcohol. I pointed to the liquor cart in the aisle up at the first row of main cabin seats. I told him that when the cart gets to his aisle, he could purchase what he wanted. He said some things that didn't really make sense, like he was in the military and he was afraid of flying. He went into the lavatory, and I went up to the liquor cart where flight attendants #3 and #4 were serving. I warned them about the passenger, and asked flight attendant #3 to go and inform the captain. Also, we all agreed not to let him have any alcohol. When flight attendant #3 came back from the cockpit, she said the pilots were aware of the passenger, because on boarding he popped his head into the cockpit and asked some absurd questions, indicating strange behavior. As I walked back toward the galley, I stopped and asked the man sitting in the 'B' seat of the exit row if it bothered him to situation next to the man and if he noticed his strange behavior. He said he was probably the best person to situation there because he had a close family member that was an alcoholic, and he was used to dealing with an intoxicated person. I continued to get my meal cart and roll it back up the aisle, when I noticed the passenger right behind me as soon as I had stopped. He had already had a confrontation with flight attendant #3 over getting liquor and he started in on me. I told him to take his seat, that we had to continue our service and that this wasn't a good time to ask or argue about being served, as the beverage cart wasn't even near his seat yet. When I started to continue serving the meals, the passenger threw something towards me that landed in the aisle in front of the cart. A business passenger across the aisle from the 'problem' passenger laid a box on the cart, saying 'I think this was meant for you.' it was a box containing a sanitary napkin. When I got to the problem passenger he said, 'I thought you might need that.' as soon as I could, I called the captain and informed him of the incident. The captain interpreted it to mean that all the female flight attendants in the back were on the rag! A male passenger asked me about the rear exit door and mentioned he was a pilot in the military. I asked him if we had a problem with a passenger, would he mind helping. He proceeded to tell me he knew the passenger was a problem outside the gate before boarding. He said he was at the bar across from gate in dallas and offered to buy a lot of the men going on his flight to los angeles a drink. At the bar, he pulled out a 'huge' switch blade about 18 inches long and threatened that if anyone tried to take it away from him, they'd be hurt bad. I immediately informed the captain. Later, a passenger across the aisle from the problem passenger said he saw him take the knife out of his bag and move it back and forth, like he was sharpening it -- all the while making threatening remarks about the flight attendants. This passenger said he was very concerned and wanted to know how he got past security. The plane was met by police in los angeles. Callback conversation with reporter revealed the following information: the reporter stated the passenger with the knife was boarded in san antonio and connected in dallas to her flight. So if he got the knife past security, it was in san antonio. On his layover at the dallas airport, he was drinking a lot in the concourse bar across from their departure gate. Other passenger later told her of his bizarre behavior in the bar. She feels that the cockpit should have notified the female flight attendants about the man, when he stuck his head in the cockpit on boarding and asked them bizarre questions. After the fact, the pilots later backed up the flight attendants completely. The military pilot, who was talking to the man, told her that the man was schizophrenic, and that the alcohol only exacerbated his condition. They did not serve him liquor on the plane, but did catch him trying to steal liquor from the galley. The man was arrested in lax, and the fbi called her at home later that night, and told her that 2 charges were being filed against him.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: FLT ATTENDANT RPT, S80, DFW-LAX, INTOXICATED PAX WITH SWITCHBLADE THREATENED FLT ATTENDANTS. POLICE MET ACFT.

Narrative: WHEN I FIRST NOTICED PAX, I ASKED WHAT HE WAS DOING IN THE GALLEY. HE SAID HE WANTED SOME WINE OR BEER. HE SMELLED STRONGLY OF ALCOHOL. I POINTED TO THE LIQUOR CART IN THE AISLE UP AT THE FIRST ROW OF MAIN CABIN SEATS. I TOLD HIM THAT WHEN THE CART GETS TO HIS AISLE, HE COULD PURCHASE WHAT HE WANTED. HE SAID SOME THINGS THAT DIDN'T REALLY MAKE SENSE, LIKE HE WAS IN THE MIL AND HE WAS AFRAID OF FLYING. HE WENT INTO THE LAVATORY, AND I WENT UP TO THE LIQUOR CART WHERE FLT ATTENDANTS #3 AND #4 WERE SERVING. I WARNED THEM ABOUT THE PAX, AND ASKED FLT ATTENDANT #3 TO GO AND INFORM THE CAPT. ALSO, WE ALL AGREED NOT TO LET HIM HAVE ANY ALCOHOL. WHEN FLT ATTENDANT #3 CAME BACK FROM THE COCKPIT, SHE SAID THE PLTS WERE AWARE OF THE PAX, BECAUSE ON BOARDING HE POPPED HIS HEAD INTO THE COCKPIT AND ASKED SOME ABSURD QUESTIONS, INDICATING STRANGE BEHAVIOR. AS I WALKED BACK TOWARD THE GALLEY, I STOPPED AND ASKED THE MAN SITTING IN THE 'B' SEAT OF THE EXIT ROW IF IT BOTHERED HIM TO SIT NEXT TO THE MAN AND IF HE NOTICED HIS STRANGE BEHAVIOR. HE SAID HE WAS PROBABLY THE BEST PERSON TO SIT THERE BECAUSE HE HAD A CLOSE FAMILY MEMBER THAT WAS AN ALCOHOLIC, AND HE WAS USED TO DEALING WITH AN INTOXICATED PERSON. I CONTINUED TO GET MY MEAL CART AND ROLL IT BACK UP THE AISLE, WHEN I NOTICED THE PAX RIGHT BEHIND ME AS SOON AS I HAD STOPPED. HE HAD ALREADY HAD A CONFRONTATION WITH FLT ATTENDANT #3 OVER GETTING LIQUOR AND HE STARTED IN ON ME. I TOLD HIM TO TAKE HIS SEAT, THAT WE HAD TO CONTINUE OUR SVC AND THAT THIS WASN'T A GOOD TIME TO ASK OR ARGUE ABOUT BEING SERVED, AS THE BEVERAGE CART WASN'T EVEN NEAR HIS SEAT YET. WHEN I STARTED TO CONTINUE SERVING THE MEALS, THE PAX THREW SOMETHING TOWARDS ME THAT LANDED IN THE AISLE IN FRONT OF THE CART. A BUSINESS PAX ACROSS THE AISLE FROM THE 'PROB' PAX LAID A BOX ON THE CART, SAYING 'I THINK THIS WAS MEANT FOR YOU.' IT WAS A BOX CONTAINING A SANITARY NAPKIN. WHEN I GOT TO THE PROB PAX HE SAID, 'I THOUGHT YOU MIGHT NEED THAT.' AS SOON AS I COULD, I CALLED THE CAPT AND INFORMED HIM OF THE INCIDENT. THE CAPT INTERPED IT TO MEAN THAT ALL THE FEMALE FLT ATTENDANTS IN THE BACK WERE ON THE RAG! A MALE PAX ASKED ME ABOUT THE REAR EXIT DOOR AND MENTIONED HE WAS A PLT IN THE MIL. I ASKED HIM IF WE HAD A PROB WITH A PAX, WOULD HE MIND HELPING. HE PROCEEDED TO TELL ME HE KNEW THE PAX WAS A PROB OUTSIDE THE GATE BEFORE BOARDING. HE SAID HE WAS AT THE BAR ACROSS FROM GATE IN DALLAS AND OFFERED TO BUY A LOT OF THE MEN GOING ON HIS FLT TO LOS ANGELES A DRINK. AT THE BAR, HE PULLED OUT A 'HUGE' SWITCH BLADE ABOUT 18 INCHES LONG AND THREATENED THAT IF ANYONE TRIED TO TAKE IT AWAY FROM HIM, THEY'D BE HURT BAD. I IMMEDIATELY INFORMED THE CAPT. LATER, A PAX ACROSS THE AISLE FROM THE PROB PAX SAID HE SAW HIM TAKE THE KNIFE OUT OF HIS BAG AND MOVE IT BACK AND FORTH, LIKE HE WAS SHARPENING IT -- ALL THE WHILE MAKING THREATENING REMARKS ABOUT THE FLT ATTENDANTS. THIS PAX SAID HE WAS VERY CONCERNED AND WANTED TO KNOW HOW HE GOT PAST SECURITY. THE PLANE WAS MET BY POLICE IN LOS ANGELES. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: THE RPTR STATED THE PAX WITH THE KNIFE WAS BOARDED IN SAN ANTONIO AND CONNECTED IN DALLAS TO HER FLT. SO IF HE GOT THE KNIFE PAST SECURITY, IT WAS IN SAN ANTONIO. ON HIS LAYOVER AT THE DALLAS ARPT, HE WAS DRINKING A LOT IN THE CONCOURSE BAR ACROSS FROM THEIR DEP GATE. OTHER PAX LATER TOLD HER OF HIS BIZARRE BEHAVIOR IN THE BAR. SHE FEELS THAT THE COCKPIT SHOULD HAVE NOTIFIED THE FEMALE FLT ATTENDANTS ABOUT THE MAN, WHEN HE STUCK HIS HEAD IN THE COCKPIT ON BOARDING AND ASKED THEM BIZARRE QUESTIONS. AFTER THE FACT, THE PLTS LATER BACKED UP THE FLT ATTENDANTS COMPLETELY. THE MIL PLT, WHO WAS TALKING TO THE MAN, TOLD HER THAT THE MAN WAS SCHIZOPHRENIC, AND THAT THE ALCOHOL ONLY EXACERBATED HIS CONDITION. THEY DID NOT SERVE HIM LIQUOR ON THE PLANE, BUT DID CATCH HIM TRYING TO STEAL LIQUOR FROM THE GALLEY. THE MAN WAS ARRESTED IN LAX, AND THE FBI CALLED HER AT HOME LATER THAT NIGHT, AND TOLD HER THAT 2 CHARGES WERE BEING FILED AGAINST HIM.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2007 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.