/ Source: The Associated Press
A New York man who raised a ruckus on a Continental Airlines jet in a failed attempt to get a free ticket has been sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison.
Arthur David Proskin was sentenced Thursday by a federal judge in Texas for interfering with a flight crew. He pleaded guilty in October.
Prosecutors say Proskin was traveling from Houston to Palm Springs, Calif., last April, when a beverage cart struck his knee. They say he acted upset and yelled obscenities at a flight attendant and other passengers.
The plane diverted to Midland International Airport where the then-44-year-old Proskin was removed and arrested.
He later told investigators that he created the disturbance to get free travel vouchers.