A passenger aboard an Alaska Airlines flight is staring down a potential $10,000 penalty after lighting up an e-cigarette at 35,000 feet.
The incident happened March 26 on Flight AS1463, a Boeing 737 traveling from Seattle to Sacramento—California’s capital, which often flies under the radar compared to Los Angeles or San Francisco. The flight lasts about 90 minutes.
Somewhere over the West Coast, the passenger reportedly vaped in the lavatory, setting off the smoke alarm. The pilot radioed ahead to let ground crews know they’d want law enforcement waiting at the gate. And sure enough, when the plane landed, police were there to have a conversation.
Under federal regulations, smoking—including e-cigarettes—is prohibited onboard aircraft. When an alarm gets triggered, the fine typically lands somewhere between $5,000 and $10,000, which works out to roughly $35,000 to $70,000 in local currency terms.
The ban isn’t just about secondhand smoke or passenger comfort. There’s a safety angle too. If a smoke alarm goes off over something routine like a vape and a genuine mechanical issue pops up at the same time, that warning could get overlooked or delayed. Aircraft sensors can’t tell the difference between cigarette vapor and actual smoke; the alert looks and sounds the same either way.
Inflight vaping incidents have become more common in recent years. Some passengers have walked away with fines between $2,000 and $4,000. But once that alarm goes off, the bar moves—typically starting around $9,000.