Mr Hersey had been drinking before the flight, a witness said A US man has been arrested after trying to open an emergency exit door during a Florida to Boston flight, police say.
Robert Hersey, 43, of Arlington, Massachusetts, pulled the handle on the door, triggering an alarm, officials said. Witnesses described him as drunk.
A flight attendant escorted him to the rear of the plane and an off-duty police officer sat with him for the duration of the Delta flight.
Mr Hersey was charged on Tuesday night with interfering with a flight crew.
Passengers told local media Mr Hersey, who was wearing a shirt supporting the Boston Bruins hockey team, was foul-mouthed, intoxicated and unhappy the flight was late.
He tried to open the exit door on the Airbus 320 about half-way between Orlando, in Florida, and Boston, Massachusetts, passengers told the Boston Globe.
Mr Hersey was scheduled to appear in court on Wednesday.
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