An Air Wisconsin flight attendant was charged with criminal public intoxication on Thursday after a video emerged of her slumped over drunk on a United Express flight.
49-year-old Julianne March of Waukesha, Wisconsin, was formally charged with the crime by the St. Joseph County Prosecutor’s Office.
The video shows March leaning over in her seat unresponsive on a flight from Chicago to South Bend, Indiana. Passengers said March appeared to be under the influence and began to give a “very slurred” security announcement once passengers boarded.
“She was kind of leaning against the galley and didn’t seem to be making eye with passengers while boarding, which seemed a little strange,” one passenger told ABC News.
Witnesses also said March bumped into seats and passengers along the aisle as she checked the overhead bins. Once the plane took off, she “appeared to pass out for nearly the whole flight,” according to a passenger. She even had to have her seat belt fastened for her.
March started crying when the plane landed, and officers came aboard to arrest her. When asked what city she was in, March confessed that she thought the plane had landed in Chicago, according to the criminal complaint.
March was administered a Breathalyzer test, which showed her blood alcohol level was 0.204. Federal Aviation Administration guidelines set the legal limit at .04 for alcohol for aviation sensitive positions, including flight attendants.
“The FAA would investigate this on the civil side for any violations of the Federal Aviation Regulations that apply to safety-sensitive employees,” an FAA representative said. “Our regulations prohibit these employees from performing job duties while under the influence of alcohol or drugs.”
The United Express flight was operated by Air Wisconsin.
ABC News reported that March is no longer an employee of Air Wisconsin. She was a probationary flight attendant and was fired in accordance that she did not complete the probationary time period. She was only with Air Wisconsin for a few months.
“We expect our regional carriers to take appropriate action as required when issues like these happen with their employees. Legally and with regards to regulatory agencies, this is an Air Wisconsin issue,” a United Airlines representative told ABC News.
March was released from St. Joseph’s County, Indiana, jail on her own recognizance and has a court date set for Aug. 29.
