I hope he gets 20 years to think about it.

It's time to quit serving alcohol on planes, in airports and if a passenger arrives who's already been drinking, don't let them on the plane.

I'm not opposed to drinking at all, but I am opposed to being stuck in a tin-can at 35,000 feet with an obnoxious drunk.

It's not the alcohol's fault that this guy is a total dip@!$%#.

Banning it would just encourage true alkies to try and smuggle it on in their carryon.

ha...excellent

How do you say "you're @!$%#ed" in Russian?

"you're @!$%#ed" Comrade

"Well Jeeeze! I don't know what the problem is? That happens all of the time on my Aeroflot flights. In fact they prefer you travel with a 'few under your belt' when traveling and they expect unruly loud mouthed travelers," said the passenger. "What's the problem?"

I hope the Feds send a message when they prosecute this guy. Having a sh-- head like this guy show up in a bar or restaurant is one thing but having to deal with his antics at 35,000 feet, trapped in a jet with him, is another. Lighten his wallet and give him some time in a Federal Prison. This "ain't" Armenia buddy.

It could not have been Whitney! I was surprised she was able to even fit in the seat. I don't understand why they could not see that it was not that she did not want to buckle her seat belt - she couldn't!

Nah ... not a 'few' years. At most two. Lets not burden the taxpayers more than necessary. Then give him to the Iranians who in the end would most likely shoot him in the head.

Doctor Jim59:

You have just proved that their are more psychopaths who could use some help just like this guy.

He is is obviously an alcoholic....what is your excuse.?

Because they are $6 each and AMR is bankrupt.

He probably already had a few before the flight.

It may or may not have been the airline that served him drinks. He could have drank at any number of the resturants or bars at the airport while waiting for his flight and may have already been drunk when he boarded the plane.

Christy -

So he drank at the bar in the airport and then 90 mins later (an hour and a half later) he still hadn't sobered up but got drunker (because it takes alcohol an hour and a half to go into effect)?

So telling a person with a alcohol problem he can't have anyone is going to make him do what? Oh I know he'll say, "Why thank you. Yes I have had enough. Thank you ever so much." Odds are no matter what they did the @sshole was going to be a @sshole with or without the liquor.

You're making a lot of assumptions. It's a 6 hour flight into those headwinds; 3 drinks in that time period is not going to leave someone too drunk to drive. Moreover, we don't know that he was going to drive a car when he got to LA. Maybe he was going out to visit his uncle, who was planning to pick him up.

A bar that serves someone 3 drinks over a 6 hour period is... going broke, is what they're doing. Bars aren't going to cut someone off unless he's sloppy drunk. Maybe this guy was utterly hammered. Maybe he wasn't. Maybe he just found out that his wife was having an affair, and he lost it on the plane.

I don't say any of this to excuse the guy's behavior; clearly he needs to face these charges, and if he's found guilty and spends a few years in prison, well, so be it. That's what you get for assault and battery. Fine. But while it seems like alcohol may have played a part in this, none of us can actually KNOW what went on because we were not there.

Hey Mack

1) He had several drinks and began to wig out 90 minutes into the flight - no idea what your point is about the 6 hours except to prove that you did not read (or comprehend or remember) the article

2) Alcohol played a huge part in it, dimwit.

In fact, I'm responding to the comment DRK made about the potential horror of this guy getting into a car. Who knows how much he had (or would have had) to drink? Who knows if he would've gotten into a car? Who knows what mindset he had when he got on the plane? Who knows if the guy was already imbalanced? Who knows if he was on a 5th cycle of anabolic steroids? Who knows if he had ADHD, or bi-polar disorder, or oppositional defiant disorder, or borderline personality disorder, or anything else?

The article says, "he had several drinks." That could mean two, or three, or 17. There is no way to know.

While it's likely that alcohol certainly didn't help the situation any, to state categorically that it was THE factor in this circumstance is to make an enormous assumption.

Of course, you're right: I'm a dimwit. Thanks for playing!

Wow. Defend that losing position.

Right.

Maybe the whole thing is a lie.

Maybe he had Tourette's.

His behavior got bad 90 MINUTES into the flight after downing SEVERAL drinks. Several is never less than three - never.

How is relating his behavior to his to his alcohol intake such an ENORMOUS ASSUMPTION?

It is the LOGICAL ASSUMPTION.

Or were you just chiming in with a superficial comment?

Have you seen an airline cocktail? It's a 1.5 ounce bottle. 3 of those and the guy is hammered? Give me a break. Granted, maybe he had five or six drinks before getting on the plane, but here, one more time, is the point:

WE DON'T KNOW.

WE DON'T KNOW.

Were you on the flight? Were you seated next to the guy? Did you administer a breathalyzer test?

I didn't think so.

Carry on with your assumptions about what happened, though. Because, after all, you're right. You're omniscient. You see all, you know all... omniscient.

"Several is never less than three - never."

Actually "several" means >= 2

Not sure where >= 3 came from.

Either way, this dip@!$%# needs to learn a lesson that that sort of behavior is not going to be tolerated.

I was on a transatlantic flight once where the two guys behind me were drinking a lot and getting louder and louder. I spoke to a flight attendant who said "Thank you, we've already shut them off from more alcohol but with a complaint from a passenger we can go ask them to quiet down." The guys did quiet down some, and the rest of the flight when the drink cart came around, their choices were coffee, tea, soda, or water. The staff said it helps them if passengers complain (politely) when they see someone getting drunk or beligerent.

I do wish they'd observe people's behavior in the waiting lounge, to try to keep people who are already drunk or mentally unbalanced off the plane.

excellent point!

Another point a lot of people aren't aware of is that alcohol effects people more strongly at higher altitude. The pressure in the cabin could have been the same as 8000 feet (the minimum pressure allowed under FAA regs). Still no excuse for this behavior, but might explain why he didn't seem to have had enough to get crappy drunk.

Hey Mr. "InsertEyeRollHere," you may want to learn some basic rules of etiquette and apply them when posting in a public news forum. Just because someone looks at something in a different way doesn't mean they're a "dimwit." You've no right to cast aspersions on anyone for voicing an opinion here, especially one who was simply analyzing a situation rationally and dispassionately.

Chouse

"Several" means more than 2, not more than or equal to 2, a couple means equal to 2.

And anything that's more than 2 is greater than or equal to 3.

Wrong Sam. "a couple" is = 2, "several" is >=2. Of course the usage will vary with regional dialect, but that is indeed the standard usage in most of the USA. The person I was replying to was trying to assert that the definition of several ALWAYS means >= 3 and that simply is not the case.

In defending InsertEyeRollHere do you understand how often that person talks out their ass? Apparently not.

Chouse:

Several means more than 2. I never bind myself to an argument without proof. Apparently you do.

Oxford English Dictionary: http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/several?region=us

Merriam-Webster Dictionary: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/several

Dictionary.com: http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/several

Cambridge American English Dictionary:

http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/american-english/several_1?q=several

ALL define several are more than two (more than two meaning greater than or equal to 3)

I couldn't give a @!$%# about what the OED states when somebody was implying something that just is not the case. People regularly (right or wrong) use it to mean it as I said. Deal with it. The Queen's Definition be damned.

Like "them facts"?

"People regularly (right or wrong) use it to mean it as I said"

Thankfully you don't speak for ALL people (what's with the parenthesis it's already been established that you use it wrongly); and if you want to hold on to the idea that you're right even though you have 4 sources stating otherwise them so be.

The "fact" that you stubbornly hold on to your ignorance is kind of amusing to me...and a little sad.

We're discussing regional variations and you try to fall back on OED once again. Schmuck.

In addition to whatever other legal actions taken against this man, he should also be charged with the cost to the airline and inconvenience to the other passengers of diverting the plane to a different destination.

The airlines make a lot of money off booze. So probably not.

I definitely agree that it may be possible. We like to punish the many because of the few.

But I hope they don't because I NEED my drink on an airplane. I don't like to fly.

What are you: the shining example of arrogance and elitism?

@ Ichabod....what a foolish thing to post.

Having seen the absolutely abominable behavior of scores of Americans over the years while traveling overseas, I don't think we're all that much to be proud of, ourselves.

So basically, Ichabod, STFU.

Maybe he was white and wanted a cool fantasy RPG like name? >:3

"Maybe he was white and wanted a cool fantasy RPG like name? >:3"

Names ending with -ian are of Armenian origin - that is white, or at least Mediterranean/Turkic in appearance, like Kim Kardashian. Not sure what you were trying to imply there...

I was implying you could not suggest by looking at someone's name their culture or race for sure. He could have changed it to be that no matter what his race or cultural background was.

Quite the opposite, most names do give telltale clues to understand where their family may have come from.

Seriously...anyone punching him out (however deservedly) would be opening himself to a lawsuit and possible criminal record. Unless it was a hijacker or terrorist, most people would avoid involvement for this reason.

Depends on how out-of-hand the douche got. IMO, once he said the word "KILL" he became fair game.

hey! i travel a lot of overseas asian flights. 15 or so hours on a plane won't be as inviting with out a drink or 2 or 3 to get me there. go easy. we aren't all trouble makers.seems this guy was taken care of easily enough.

Billy, he was flying from NYC to LA. That's domestic. And they stopped in Denver. That's about halfway into the flight. Let's say for sake of argument that the attendant served him only one drink within the 2 hrs. He could have had several before. If drunk passengers is an issue instead of a news article, then the airlines need to establish a policy.

why curtail the freedom of everyone because a few people can't handle their booze?

There's absolutely no reason to serve alcohol on flights? What about the majority of fliers with jittery nerves that just want a drink or two before they take a nap?

It sucks enough that you have to pay for it on top of the excessive ticket prices- don't make it completely unavailable...

Sounds like there should be a drink limit on flights, maybe based on the length of the flight. If the airlines need to make up the lost money, sell us something else, like a decent snack.

My son doesn't drink, but when he takes a long trip in a plane like to Hawaii, he does because he is afraid to fly. He will have a couple of drinks, He will crack a couple of jokes then off to sleep for the rest of the flight. So it just depends on the person and what type of personality they have. But after seeing how scared he was on the plane, I told him we would take a boat next time we went anywhere. He loves the water and no fear. So it all comes down to weather the person is a nasty drinker or a pleasant one. But some people need that drink or a tranquilizer medication to get on a plane.

I'm old enough to remember when smoking was allowed on airlines and the standard repines to any delay or other problem was a free round of drink. Back then, there was no air rage or similar problems. I don't think alcohol is the problem.

What a foolish post, GoSox.

InsertEyeRollHere, do you ever actually add anything of value to a conversation? Because based on your posts here that I've read so far, all you seem to do is insult other people.

He seemed to speak English well enough from the story.

I thought the same. He curses and threatens in English, and suddenly doesn't understand it? BS.

Reminds me of what an old retired cop told me, "Mexicans are like cue balls, the harder you hit them, the more English you get." This guy is an Armenian cue ball, I'll wager.

He had to speak english to get his ticket.

You don't have to speak english to get a ticket.

get help

Good luck Sickie. American Airlines checked in my sister as "Daniel" and refused to change it, despite the problems it caused with connecting flights. They also lost my luggage. Worst airline ever.

All domestic airlines are the "worst airline ever".

Stewardess? She? The story refers to them as flight attendants. I assumed they were male.