(CNN) -- It's a cautionary tale: Capping off a 50-day bender with a transcontinental flight may cause confusion.


A Ukrainian man returning
from a trip during which he "got drunk and stayed drunk for the entire
50 days," according to court papers, faces federal charges after
attempting to open an emergency exit moments after his flight landed.
Details of the commotion are contained in a federal complaint filed by
the U.S. attorney in Utah.
The complaint says that
as the plane was descending, Anatoliy N. Baranovich, 46, woke and
started yelling in Russian that the wing of the aircraft was on fire.
Passengers wrestled
Baranovich when he tried to open the emergency exit shortly after
landing, documents say. Later, Baranovich told investigators through an
interpreter that he thought the plane's wing was on fire and was close
to scraping the ground.
The incident occurred
Monday night aboard Delta Flight 1215 -- a Boeing 757 -- traveling from
Boston to Salt Lake City. Baranovich lives in Portland, Oregon,
according to the U.S. attorney's office.



Read the FBI complaint against Baranovich (PDF)
Baranovich's rough
homecoming came after a trip to visit family in Ukraine, where he was
planning to start building a house. But those building plans fell
through.
According to the
complaint, he also "stated that he got drunk and stayed drunk for the
entire 50 days" of his visit. The drinking continued while traveling
back to the United States, but Baranovich "could not specify when, how
much or where he consumed the alcohol."
When the 757 touched
down, Baranovich jumped out of his seat and ran to the back of the
aircraft, where he tried to open an emergency exit, according to the
complaint.
A flight attendant
ordered Baranovich to stop, but he continued to open the door, breaking
the door and an inflatable slide and damaging the fuselage, the court
papers say.
Several passengers
jumped out of their seats, pinning Baranovich against a galley wall, the
complaint says. He attempted to open the exit on the other side of the
plane, stopping only when a former police officer forced him to the
floor. The ex-cop searched Baranovich's fanny pack, finding his Ukraine
passport and U.S. visa.
Baranovich faces charges
of damaging and disabling an aircraft and interference with a flight
crew. Each charge carries a sentence of up to 20 years in prison.
"We do not believe there is a connection to terrorism," FBI spokeswoman Deborah Bertram said.


Baranovich appeared in court Wednesday and was assigned counsel. He remained in custody Wednesday.


Delta Air Lines is in
contact with other passengers, a spokesman said. "We continue to
cooperate with the FBI, which is leading the followup."