An affidavit prepared by FBI special agent Darryl Jelinek said Szele was on flight 643 Tuesday from New York to San Francisco when she yelled obscenities and racial epithets at a flight attendant who tried to stop her from smoking a cigarette.
Szele allegedly broke through flex cuffs that flight attendants used to restrain her and punched an attendant in the jaw, prompting the captain to divert the flight to Denver.
Authorities say Szele said she had been drinking and doesn't remember the incident.
A detention hearing was scheduled for Monday.
