ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — A man faces a felony assault charge after an unprovoked attack on a sleeping fellow passenger during a cross-country flight this week, according to authorities.

An FBI agent said Everett Chad Nelson repeatedly punched the other man in the face and head, leaving him bleeding, before another passenger pulled him off the victim.

The attack on a United Airlines flight Monday from San Francisco to Dulles International Airport in northern Virginia lasted about a minute.

“Thanks to the quick action of our crew and customers, a passenger was detained after becoming physically aggressive with another customer,” United said in a statement. “The flight landed safely and was met by paramedics and local law enforcement.”

United said there were 82 customers and six crew members on the flight.

According to an FBI affidavit, Nelson left his seat in the back of the plane and used a front lavatory before attacking the other man, who suffered bruising around his eyes and a cut on his nose. Blood was spattered on Nelson’s windshield sleeves.

The agent said Nelson was moved to a seat near the front of the plane and was followed by the passenger who had stopped the attack. There was no indication Nelson knew the victim, who has not been identified.

The public defender listed as Nelson’s attorney did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A federal magistrate ruled that Nelson should be held pending trial, which is scheduled for December 11 in Alexandria, Virginia. The magistrate cited the evidence against Nelson and his history of lack of employment and stable residence.

They were over 1,700 reports of unruly passengers on planes this year, in line with last year’s increase in incidents. Reports of unruly passengers increased in 2021, and although they declined in the following two years, they remained higher than before the coronavirus pandemic.

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