Delta Passenger Arrested After Refusing to Wear Face Mask

Within the industry they are known as ‘naughty passengers,’ a colloquialism for rule-breaking airline travelers. Lately, they seem to crop up every week.

Like this man.

Joshua Colby Council, age 44, was arrested after refusing to wear a face mask on a Delta Air Lines flight, according to KSL NewsRadio in Salt Lake City.

The incident, which took place on Thanksgiving Eve, came to light after KSL obtained documents from the Salt Lake City Justice Court.

Apparently, Council boarded Delta flight 1382 at Salt Lake City International Airport on Wednesday without a mask, bypassing a gate agent, walking down the jetway, and boarding the aircraft all without wearing a mask.

And all the while ignoring the pleas of Delta workers.

Like every airline, Delta requires all passengers and crew to wear face masks at all touchpoints in the airport and on the plane.

Council took his seat, became argumentative, and declined the flight attendants’ and crew requests to wear a mask, according to court documents. When he refused to leave, Delta called Salt Lake City police, who first asked the man to leave the plane quietly. When Council declined, police had all other passengers evacuated from the aircraft – that must have gone over well – to assure that Council could safely be removed from the aircraft.

He finally agreed to walk off the plane once it was empty. Council refused to provide identification and was arrested and booked into the Salt Lake County Jail for disorderly conduct and refusal to comply with a police order.

He was released to pre-trial services on Thanksgiving Day.

Council is not the first naughty passenger to cause a disruption, only the latest. It prompted Delta to issue a statement.

“We apologize to customers for the delay on Flight 1382 on Wednesday as a passenger was removed from the flight for mask non-compliance,” a Delta Airlines spokesperson said in a statement sent to KSL. “There is nothing more important than the safety of our people and customers.”

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