MORRISVILLE, NC – The woman who caused a flight from Jacksonville, Fla. to Washington, DC to land at Raleigh-Durham International Airport said Wednesday’s incident was a major misunderstanding.
Tiffany Miles faces airport obstruction charges. She gets out of prison on Thursday and is on her way to Washington, DC. She posted $1,000 bail and was released around 1 a.m. Thursday.
Airline personnel radioed air traffic control to report that Miles was attempting to enter the cockpit of American Airlines Flight 3444. However, Miles said she was on her way to the toilet after an argument with a flight attendant.
American Airlines said Miles was recalcitrant and raised safety concerns that forced Wednesday’s forced landing on the RDU.
“I’m allowed to get excited,” Miles said. “Getting angry is not against the law.”
Miles said she was scared and tried to order a cocktail. A flight attendant told her there was no drink service. The flight attendant refused to ask the captain why there was no beverage service on the flight.
After the encounter, Miles says she got up and headed toward the bathroom, which is toward the cockpit. There, a flight attendant stopped her and a passenger stepped in to calm her down. About five minutes later, the flight crew used zip ties and placed them on the back of the plane until the plane landed safely on the RDU.
“I started freaking out because so many people started attacking me,” Miles said. “I started freaking out and said, ‘This isn’t hip.’
Miles faces a retrial on March 27 on the misdemeanor charge.
The FBI interviewed Miles at RDU on Wednesday. She faces no federal charges as of Thursday afternoon. The Raleigh-Durham Airport Authority Police Department filed airport obstruction charges against Miles.