Tipsheet

We Just Learned More About the Man Hit by a Frontier Airlines Plane, and It's Raising Eyebrows

Amy Curtis
Amy Curtis  |  May 13, 2026 8:30 AM

Several Frontier Airlines passengers suffered minor injuries over the weekend when their plane, departing from the Denver airport, struck a person trespassing on the runway. That person was killed after being hit by the plane's engine, which caused an explosion and fire that aborted the takeoff.

That man has now been identified, which is raising questions about whether this was a sinister act, given his extensive criminal history. 

Authorities said Michael Mott, 41, was the man hit by the plane on May 9. Mott has been arrested 20 times previously, including for attempted murder. He was most recently arrested about a month before he trespassed at the Denver airport.

Mott was arrested in 2005 for attempted murder, a charge that was later pleaded down to second-degree assault. For that crime, Mott was sentenced to six years in prison. During his time behind bars, he was also charged with felony assault using a weapon.

Despite that, Mott continued his life of crime after his release, and charges included felony assault on a peace officer, domestic violence, and other crimes.

This makes people wonder if Mott didn't try to kill a plane full of people with his final act.

Thankfully, Mott will never be able to harm another person again.

Yes, they are.

We should do something about that.

It's not hard. If we enacted even a three-strikes rule, violent crime would drop dramatically.

The irony, of course, is that had the system kept Mott behind bars or forced mental health treatment on people, he might still be alive.