Battery Stunt on Jet Leads to Charges
An airline passenger who tried to recharge a battery with a lighter, forcing the plane to be diverted, was charged Wednesday with interfering with a flight crew.
An attorney for Maxim Segalov said it didn’t appear that his client meant any harm to the San Francisco-bound flight.
“I think he’s scared to death and doesn’t understand anything at this juncture,” lawyer Steven Killpack said.
Segalov allegedly put a flame to an AA-size battery used in his CD player while on the American Airlines flight Tuesday from Chicago. After the plane landed in Salt Lake City, Segalov and a companion were removed from the jet.
Killpack said Segalov, a native of Belarus, has no criminal record and is a U.S. citizen and a student at San Jose State University.
The flight left for San Francisco a few hours later.
Heating batteries is a way of eking out a little more energy.
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