Alaska Airlines Flight 1057, a regularly scheduled service from Portland (PDX) to Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport (DFW), diverted to Boise, Idaho, early on Tuesday morning after a passenger allegedly assaulted a pair of flight attendants. Police ultimately identified the woman in question as 61-year-old Tracy Brkhimer of White Salmon, Washington, saying that she showed erratic behavior and that she struck a set of crew members who were looking to calm her.
Ultimately, she was restrained onboard and then removed without further incident upon landing and quickly booked into the Ada County Jail. The crew was medically rapidly cleared, and then the flight continued onwards after a roughly 90-minute delay. Barkhimer reportedly faces two misdemeanor battery counts, posted a $600 cash bond, has a November court date, and is permanently banned from flying with Alaska Airlines.
A Deeper Look At The Incident In Question
According to reports published by CBS News, Alaska Airlines Flight 1057, a scheduled service from Portland to Dallas, diverted to Boise after passenger Tracy Barkhimer, a 61-year-old, allegedly struck a pair of flight attendants. Boise Police say that she demonstrated erratic behavior. They also noted that the crew restrained her and that, upon landing, attendants filed a citizen’s arrest.
Medics quickly cleared the flight to continue onwards, and it took off after around 90 minutes on the ground. Barkhimer was booked into the Ada County Jail and now faces multiple misdemeanor counts. Alaska Airlines has been quick to reiterate its zero-tolerance policy for violence against airline employees. The incident was categorized at the time of occurrence as a “security incident,” and it prompted a precautionary diversion.
What Does This Mean For Alaska Airlines?
At the end of the day, this is a fairly isolated incident, and one that is pretty much immaterial to Alaska’s financials and its relationships with its customers. However, it does touch upon some core risk areas. Most notably, there are impacts on the company’s safety culture, operations, and brand. The diversion to Boise did add some extra fuel, handling, and crew-time costs and did risk a missed connection cascade, although this specific incident was relatively well-constrained to a roughly 90-minute delay.
Passengers can expect Alaska Airlines to file reports that can trigger Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) civil penalties and Department of Justice referrals, reinforcing the company’s zero-tolerance stance and lifetime ban, both of which are important signals to crews and unions. From an internal perspective, the airline is going to be reviewing de-escalation and restraint protocols, incident reporting, and future-time knock-ons.
From an external perspective, the airline’s reaction to the incident does improve its reputation. Swift crew action, medical clearance, and a clean handoff to local police help support customer trust. Unless Alaska Airlines sees a pattern of this kind of unruly behavior, it won’t have any impact on the airline’s financials. It simply serves as a reminder that post-pandemic cabin disruptions do exist and that consistent enforcement, training, and communications will be the keys to minimizing operational spillovers.
Have Similar Incidents Occurred In The Past?
This incident is one of many that have occurred since the pandemic. The Federal Aviation Administration has reported that the rate of unruly passenger incidents has only continued to rise since the COVID-19 pandemic. More than 1,200 cases were reported in 2024, and civil penalties associated with these kinds of incidents have risen to more than $37,000.
Recent examples of these kinds of incidents include a Southwest Airlines flight that was diverted in May after a passenger allegedly tried to open an exit and then subsequently assaulted crewmembers. This led to a direct FBI indictment for interference in normal flight operations.
Over the past couple of weeks, multiple United Airlines flights in Houston saw arrests occur after passengers allegedly attempted to open doors, an incident which triggered a slide deployment. These incidents have spanned across airlines and geographies, and they highlight persistent challenges in cabin safety.
