Federal Indictment in Brooklyn
Svetlana Dali, a 57-year-old Russian woman, was indicted on Monday by a federal grand jury in Brooklyn after allegedly stowing away on a flight from New York to Paris. Dali faces a stowaway charge that carries a maximum penalty of five years in prison.
The Incident and Arrest
Dali was discovered aboard a Delta Air Lines flight en route from JFK International Airport in New York to Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris on November 26. She was promptly returned to the United States a week later and arrested.
Released on bail with a GPS monitoring device, Dali reportedly cut off the tracker and attempted to enter Canada, leading to her second arrest on December 16 in Buffalo. Since then, she has been held at the Brooklyn Detention Center.
Her court-appointed lawyer declined to comment on the indictment.
Security Breaches Raise Concerns
Dali’s arrest is one of several recent incidents raising alarms about security lapses in air travel. In the past month, individuals hiding in airplane wheel wells have been found dead on separate occasions. Additionally, another stowaway was arrested on a different flight in late 2023.
In a separate incident, a passenger in Boston opened an emergency door while a plane was taxiing. These cases underscore vulnerabilities in air travel security, according to experts.
Air Travel Safety in Perspective
While recent incidents have highlighted flaws such as a shortage of air traffic controllers and outdated tracking technology, aviation experts stress that air travel remains remarkably safe. Over 3 million people fly safely each day, and the last deadly commercial plane crash in the United States occurred in 2009.
Still, the case of Svetlana Dali has drawn attention to the need for improved security measures to prevent breaches and ensure passenger safety.
