A man accused of threatening to kill a baby and charging toward the cockpit of a Northwest Airlines flight Friday made his initial appearance in federal court yesterday.

Santiago Lol Tizol, 37, is charged with one count of interfering with the airline's flight crew. If convicted, Tizol, a Mexican national, faces 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine.

A detention hearing will be held at 10:30 a.m. Thursday before U.S. Magistrate Kevin Chang to determine if Tizol should be held without bail. A preliminary hearing is set for Dec. 27.

Assistant U.S. Attorney William Shipley said yesterday that the investigation is continuing and that Tizol could face additional charges. Tizol allegedly bit one of the male passengers who subdued Tizol as he ran toward the cockpit.

"This just gets the process started," Shipley said of the initial charge. Shipley added that it is "standard practice" to ask that a defendant be held without bail.

"The U.S. Attorney's office and the FBI take any incident disruptive of a federal air crew as serious. It will be rigorously investigated and vigorously prosecuted and that's how we're handling this matter," he said following Tizol's court appearance.

FBI agents arrested Tizol soon after Northwest Flight 91 from Los Angeles arrived at Honolulu International Airport at 6:46 p.m. Friday. A flight attendant told investigators that Tizol began acting strangely about an hour into the flight.

About an hour later, Tizol moved from his seat to one row in front of a Canadian couple and their baby girl, according to an FBI statement filed in U.S. District Court yesterday. Tizol seemed nervous and repeatedly stood up, paced the plane's aisle, and at one point told a flight attendant that "the little boy" bothered him and that he was "disrespected by the boy," an apparent reference to the girl, the affidavit said.

Several passengers and crew members heard Tizol say he was going to kill the baby and was holding a cell phone cord "in a threatening matter," the affidavit said. Five minutes before the flight was scheduled to land, a flight attendant asked Tizol to move to the back of the plane, but he refused, the affidavit said.

The attendant then moved the Canadian couple and their baby to the back for their safety, the affidavit said. At that point, Tizol allegedly rushed the cockpit.

Four male passengers subdued Tizol and he was restrained with plastic handcuffs until the plane arrived. While he was being tackled, Tizol shouted, "I got some bad juice, I got some bad juice," the affidavit said.

Shipley would not comment on whether Tizol was intoxicated or under the influence of drugs during the flight. He also declined to say if Tizol was mentally ill.

The girl's father, who would only give his name as Jean-Francois, complained Friday that the Northwest crew did not do more before Tizol rushed the cockpit.

According to the affidavit, the captain "contemplated having Tizol restrained" and also "would have threatened to land the plane immediately had the plane not been over the ocean during Tizol's behavior." The flight crew also called the sheriff's department in Honolulu to alert officials of the unruly passenger, the affidavit said.

Reach Curtis Lum at culum@honoluluadvertiser.com.