Click on a label to read posts from that part of the world.

Disruptive passenger didn't count on black belt "fight attendant"

by Scott Carmichael (RSS feed) on Feb 8th 2010 at 12:30PM

Rarely do you hear the words "At that point, I just put him into a choke hold" coming from a flight attendant.

But this is exactly what happened on US Airways flight 1447 last week when passenger Kinman Chan allegedly started freaking out after he doubled up on his dose of medicinal marijuana.

According to reports, halfway into the flight, Mr. Chan started losing his mind - screaming, banging on the bathroom doors and opening compartments in the rear of the plane.

He then went into a bathroom and came out with his pants down. It was at this point that flight attendant Lorin Gorman told him to sit down. When he refused, he also made a threatening motion to her - so she put him in an arm lock, jumped on him, and put him in a choke hold.

The plane was diverted to Pittsburgh where Chan was arrested and charged with disrupting a flight attendant. He now faces up to 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

Poor Mr. Chan obviously had not expected to run into a fourth-degree Tae Kwon Do expert on his flight. She credits her post-9/11 special training for her skills and ability to deal with small spaces.

Gallery: Ten pilots you don't want in your cockpit

Filed under: North America, United States, Airports

Search Travel Deals

Reader Comments (Page 4 of 4)

krstne69 Feb 9th 2010 1:27PM

I have never heard of anyone freaking out after doing any amount of marijuana. I would bet it all that he was on something else besides that. If he doubled a dose of marijuana he should have been mellow then he should have passed out. Blaming his actions on medical marijuana is crazy. All it does is ruin it for the people that need it. That's how much needed medical drugs get a bad rep!!!

Jess Feb 9th 2010 1:34PM

Good. This guy was an idiot and could have killed everyone on the plane.

afflictedtapout Feb 9th 2010 1:34PM

Onboard flight entertainment at its best lol

Lori Feb 9th 2010 1:44PM

If any one of you geniuses had done even 5 seconds worth of research, you would know that they guy ate marijuana cookies before the flight. Figures dude is from San Francisco, which is where he was headed when he decided to go all Jackie Chan and the flight attendant had to show him how it's done. The article did not mention why he was on the medicinal pot, or how he got it, but I don't care how sick he may be, if he was having a reaction to the drug, combined with anything else he may have taken, he could very easily have caused a serious safety issue. Banging on the lavatory doors, opening over-head compartments, EXPOSING HIMSELF. Seriously people, at what point would you say he was out of control and needed to be restrained? By the way Portia, you can get medicinal marijuana for having glaucoma, and that doesn't even cause pain. I should know, I have had glaucoma for 2 years. So, shut up until you have actually learned something.

Charruawarrior Feb 9th 2010 1:52PM

Tae Kwon Do is the lamest of all the martial arts. If she was simply a black belt in tae kwon do she would not have been able to accomplish the moves the article states. To do those moves she must have studied a real martial art like brazilian jiu jitsu.

Doyle Feb 9th 2010 2:28PM

Obviously a comment from an arrogant Jujitsu stylist. I've seen them often. They like to talk tough and attack, expecting you to just grapple with them. They tend to lose their arrogance and accuse you of a cheap shot once you hit them. Charruawarrios is slightly right, in that TKD is a striking art. But, many of the schools which teach a narrow range of skills (like TKD, Karate, Jujitsu, etc.) have started bringing in other stylists to broaden what their students learn. There are very few schools left that just teach one style. The only exception is traditional Kung Fu, which by it's very nature, for centuries, has taught a complete range of self-defense skills. I presume this flight attendant trains at a school which teaches more than just traditional TKD.

Matt Feb 9th 2010 1:51PM

So ah...I have an eight hour lay hour in Amsterdam coming up in March and then I'm continuing over to Turkey afterward. Do you think if I ate a brownie filled with "medical marijuana" while I'm in the city and then got on the airplane to Turkey, I could possibly have the same reaction? Is it advisable? I haven't really smoked before. I need your honest opinion!

gs Feb 9th 2010 2:16PM

i am sure there will be ciminal charges and a law suite comming against the "black Belt"

Chris Feb 9th 2010 2:04PM

Chan was probably looking for munchies !

k6185 Feb 9th 2010 2:21PM

Cabin crew member ,Ms.Lorin Gorman, should be justly recognized and praised , for her firm and decisive action dealing with an irrational passenger. Perhaps, just perhaps she prevented a potential major on -board , mid -flight , crew & passenger threat situation, that could of turned catastrophic , for all concerned. Well Done Ms. Gorman !

drrub Feb 9th 2010 2:49PM

Where was Mr Spock when all this was happening.

I commend anyone who can handle the stress of being a flight attendant.

While flying folks, remember that State Marijuana laws do not apply.

While I may support Medical Marijuana, I also think it's not a good idea to mess with the FEDS. If you have pain, leave the weed home and do pain pills or valium before you fly. I think it was something else anyway.

If you need more info on Medical Marijuana, follow me on Twitter. Look for.. WeedMD

Joellen Hall Feb 9th 2010 2:58PM

I've wished for years that karate and/or martial arts programs were offered in schools across the country. Not only is it invaluable to be able to defend oneself, but those types of skills also teach disciplined behavior. It sure didn't hurt this girl to know how to defend herself, did it?

Sabrina Feb 9th 2010 5:30PM

I really hate it when stories like this come out to try to villainize pot. Im sorry but Ive been a smoker for quite some time now and there have been times when my friends and I smoked waaaaay toooo much and do you want to know what happened...We tore through 3 bags of chips, ice cream basically anything we could find, watched some tv and passed out. I have never heard of ANYONE (in real life, not hearsay like this story) becoming violent or causing major car crashes! I dont understand why they try to make it look bad when its legal for medical use in a number of states and decriminalized up to an oz in a number of states as well. It doesnt tweak your mind. I made it through architecture school, which is super demanding ask anyone whose gone through it, with a 3.75GPA. And neither I nor any of my friends/friends of friends have ever gotten remotely violent to anything other than ripping open a bag of chips/candy. Such crap! I understand that pot is a drug but it is on the same level as cigarettes and doesnt cause nearly as many problems as more hardcore drugs like alcohol, cocaine/crack, heroin, PCP, LSD, mushrooms, etc. no mattter what any of you anti-pot people say...look up the stats!