Man Fined $9,000 For Refusing To Wear A Mask On NorCal Flight

OAKLAND, CA — Federal authorities fined a man $9,000 after he reportedly refused to pull his face mask over his nose on a Southwest Airlines flight from Oakland to Houston in February, according to the Federal Aviation Administration.

"He said he would not comply with the policy and that face mask-wearing would not be enforced in Texas," federal officials said.

The fine was one of five fines ranging from $9,000 to $15,000 imposed on each of five airline passengers across the U.S. Monday, the FAA said. In addition to the passenger out of Oakland, two others were traveling to the Golden State.

In two cases, officials said passengers assaulted flight attendants; one incident happened on a flight to Los Angeles.

In the case of the man who refused to pull up his mask, he was in his seat on Feb. 20 when a flight attendant asked him to cover his nose with his mask, the federal agency said Monday in a statement. When he refused, the attendant brought him a mask, which he threw on the floor and said that he wouldn't wear.

The flight attendant reiterated federal and Transportation Security Administration guidance on masks and asked the passenger to acknowledge them, aviation authorities said. After he again refused, the Southwest captain arranged for law enforcement personnel to meet the aircraft when it landed in Texas. No additional details were provided on what happened next.

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In a separate incident, a passenger who traveled on a JetBlue flight from Miami to Los Angeles was fined $15,000 for assaulting a flight attendant.

A woman seated in the main cabin was brought a headset, champagne and food from the first-class section by another passenger, the aviation agency said. After a flight attendant picked up the items and carried them back to the first-class section, the passenger became enraged, officials said. She followed the attendant into the next section and yelled obscenities at him, officials said.

She then slammed her body against the flight attendant, almost pushing him into the lavatory, they said. The plane was diverted to Texas, where the passenger was removed from the plane, officials said.

Another JetBlue passenger traveling from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Los Angeles on Jan. 10 drank his own alcohol after attendants told him it was prohibited, officials said. He then proceeded to talk on his cell phone during the flight, they said. Attendants told him this was also not allowed, and he began repeatedly yelling at the attendant, the officials said.

"Flight attendants notified the pilots about the passenger’s behavior, which distracted them from performing their duties," officials said.

The passengers — who were not identified by the agency — will have 30 days after being fined by the FAA to respond.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recently offered guidance that masks are no longer needed by those who are fully vaccinated against coronavirus. California will also lift its mask mandate on June 15. But the U.S. Department of Transportation will maintain its mask mandate on planes, buses, trains and all other forms of transportation into, within and out of the U.S.

California COVID-19 Data as of Monday

• 3,674,044 cases of coronavirus have been reported in California to date.

• 1,081 newly recorded confirmed cases Saturday.

• 0.8 percent is the seven-day positivity rate.

• 64,576,707 tests have been conducted in California.

• 61,762 COVID-19 deaths have been recorded since the start of the pandemic.

• 36,364,200 vaccine doses have been administered statewide.