Jail time for air-rage woman

A New Jersey woman has been sentenced to four months in jail after she knocked a flight attendant unconscious and tried to enter the cockpit on a Northwest Airlines flight.

The court heard how Judith McKenith, 57, of Bergenfield had been drinking heavily and became aggressive when she was refused alcohol on Flight 1279 on January 6, 2004.

According to witnesses, having been denied drinks, McKenith hit a flight attendant and two passengers who tried to restrain her. She was then brought under control as she headed to the cockpit to talk to the captain.

Flying from Minneapolis to Boise, the airplane was forced to make an unscheduled landing in Billings, where McKenith was removed and arrested.

In addition to her jail sentence, the judge ordered a three-year supervision banning the defendant from air travel and a $3,357 fine to be paid to Northwest.

McKenith apologized to her fellow passengers and told US District Judge Richard Cebull that she regretted what had happened.

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