A 19-year-old student pilot named Nathan Jones reportedly made multiple attempts to enter the cockpit of an Alaska Airlines flight from San Diego International Airport to Washington Dulles International Airport on March 3, 2024.
According to a federal air marshal’s affidavit, Jones left his seat several times and tried three times to reach the front of the plane to open the cockpit door. Flight attendants sought assistance from off-duty law enforcement officers, who restrained Jones and sat beside him for the rest of the flight while the cockpit was barricaded with a beverage cart. Jones allegedly claimed he was “testing them” when questioned about his actions.
Jones, possessing a student pilot’s license and notebooks detailing aircraft operation procedures, was charged with interfering with a flight crew. He awaits a detention hearing on March 18 in Alexandria County, with his defense attorney, Robert Jenkins, requesting a competency evaluation for Jones due to symptoms suggesting a serious mental illness and being on suicide protocols. Jenkins emphasized Jones’s lack of prior criminal behavior or violence, expressing concern for his mental well-being.
Described as a “passenger disturbance,” the flight safely landed at Dulles, with the FAA launching an investigation. Alaska Airlines described the individual involved as “a confused passenger attempting non-violently to access the flight deck,” stating that local law enforcement arrested the passenger, who is now barred from flying with Alaska Airlines.
