In January, the agency implemented a "zero-tolerance" policy for bad behavior on flights. Others involve alcohol, prompting some airlines to suspend sales temporarily. According to the FAA, of nearly 5,000 reports of unruly behavior this year, more than 3,500 involve disputes over masks. Some of the confrontations are fueled by disagreements over federal requirements that passengers wear masks when boarding aircraft. The number of airline passengers cited for what the FAA terms "unruly behavior" has skyrocketed during the coronavirus pandemic. "This type of behavior has to stop," Parker said, adding that the airline also is working with the FAA, which is authorized to levy fines of up to $50,000 in such incidents. In a strongly worded video message on Instagram, American Airlines Chief Executive Doug Parker said the carrier would push to have the passenger "prosecuted to the fullest extent possible." He said the person would be banned from traveling on American. Even so, she said, "it doesn't matter when something like this happens." Hedrick said the number of incidents involving unruly passengers has declined from peaks during the summer. "I think for flight attendants going to work today, the mental exhaustion of 'what am I going to be dealing with?' - you just don't know what's going to happen on your flight today." "We've never had passengers assault us like this," Hedrick said. The Federal Aviation Administration, which is charged with enforcing rules on airplanes, has seen a sixfold increase over two years in its investigations of unruly passengers. Hedrick said problem passengers are not a new phenomenon, but recent incidents have put flight attendants increasingly on edge. The attacks come on the heels of an increase in incidents in which passengers have shouted obscenities, pushed and shoved flight attendants, harassed other passengers or even attempted to open the cockpit door. The incident echoed one from earlier this year in which a Southwest Airlines flight attendant lost several teeth after a passenger allegedly punched her in the face. Hedrick said the flight attendant was taken to a hospital for treatment of broken bones in her face. The flight attendant apologized, but the passenger left his seat, confronted her as she stood in the aircraft's galley, then punched her in the face, Hedrick said. The flight attendant apparently bumped the passenger while moving through the first-class cabin, according to Julie Hedrick, president of the Association of Professional Flight Attendants, which represents those who fly for American Airlines. It prompted the pilots to divert the flight to Denver, where the passenger was detained. Kennedy International Airport to John Wayne Airport in Orange County, Calif. The incident occurred on a flight from New York's John F. A flight attendant for American Airlines suffered broken bones in her face and had to be hospitalized after a passenger is alleged to have attacked her Wednesday, an incident the company's chief executive called "one of the worst displays of unruly behavior we've ever witnessed."
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