Passenger arrested after trying to choke flight attendant and saying plane ‘is going down’ on California flight, DOJ says

(CNN) — A California man is facing federal charges after he allegedly tried to choke a flight attendant and “said he was going to kill everybody” while on board a Frontier Airlines flight to San Francisco that had to be diverted on Monday, authorities said.

Charles Angel Salva, a 30-year-old from Fremont, made an initial court appearance Wednesday and was charged with interference with flight crew members and attendants, according to a news release from the US Attorney’s Office, Central District of California.

The airplane was climbing shortly after takeoff from Orange County, California, when flight attendants noticed oxygen masks in one of the plane’s rows were out of the overhead compartment. “Flight attendants investigated and discovered that Salva had his hand in the overhead compartment,” the US Attorney’s Office said.

A passenger told law enforcement that it appeared Salva was “claustrophobic” and “seemed like he wanted to get off the plane,” the US Attorney’s Office said, adding that the man got his hand stuck in the overhead compartment after he pulled the oxygen mask from there.

During the incident, Salva yelled obscenities at flight attendants and allegedly said, “We are all going to hell,” and “This airplane is going down,” the release said.

“Passengers helped restrain Salva, who broke out of flex cuffs and had to be restrained by a seatbelt,” the release said. “During the incident, Salva kicked one flight attendant approximately six times in the leg, causing apparent bruising and swelling, which required medical attention.”

The flight attendant whom he allegedly attempted to choke was also left with small marks to the neck, according to the US Attorney’s Office.

The flight attendants did not feel safe trying to put Salva back in his seat, and the flight was diverted to Ontario International Airport in California, the release said.

The FAA confirmed that the flight landed safely in Ontario International Airport around 6 p.m. after the crew reported a passenger disturbance and told CNN it will investigate the incident.

CNN has reached out to Salva’s attorney for comment and to Frontier Airlines for further information.

If convicted of the interference with flight crew charge, Salva would face a statutory maximum sentence of 20 years in federal prison, according to the US Attorney’s Office.

Salva is currently being held in the custody of the US Marshals Service, according to court records. His preliminary hearing is set for September 26.

The FBI and the Ontario Police Department are investigating the incident.

In 2021, the US Federal Aviation Administration announced that they would be introducing a zero-tolerance policy for fliers behaving badly on planes.

That year, passengers were issued fines for a range of incidents on planes across the United States, including one passenger who attempted to enter the plane’s cockpit and had to be restrained and another who punched a flight attendant in the face, sending them to the hospital. The most serious cases of in-flight mischief are also reported to the Department of Justice.

The single highest individual penalty, $40,823, was issued to a traveler who brought their own alcohol on board, was intoxicated, attempted to smoke marijuana in the lavatory, and sexually assaulted a flight attendant – all in a single flight.

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CNN’s Lilit Marcus contributed to this report.