Unruly airline passenger sentenced to jail

A Hawaiian Airlines passenger whose behavior aboard a Kahului to San Francisco flight forced the pilot to divert to Honolulu is going to jail for two months and must reimburse the airline.

Anthony Niederreiter pleaded guilty in federal court Friday to interfering with a flight crew. U.S. District Judge Leslie E. Kobayashi sentenced him to the two-month term and ordered him to pay the airline $20,406.

The pilot of flight 42 diverted the aircraft to Honolulu on Aug. 11 after flight attendants reported that Niederreiter yelled at them, made aggressive gestures, refused to follow their instructions, kicked the bulkhead near his seat and even told one of the flight attendants to turn the plane around.

His travel companion told the FBI that Niederreiter had been drinking beforehand.

While staying at a halfway house after his arrest, court officials said he violated terms of his release by using marijuana. He was scheduled to begin serving his jail term today.