Woman reportedly boards plane, flies to Los Angeles without ticket

Officials said she was screened at the security checkpoint with all other passengers, but it's unclear how Hartman made it past both the TSA and Southwest employees at the gate without a ticket.

"You know, one single person able to do something like that, it does raise the hackles on the back of the neck a little bit," said airport patron John Ector.

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Hartman has been arrested four times at San Francisco's airport for trying to board a flight to Hawaii without a valid boarding pass and violating a stay-away order.

"Yeah, that is concerning because that means anyone could just get on a plane and do whatever they want to do," said Southwest passenger Angie Meza.

A San Jose Airport spokeswoman issued a statement saying, "The airport's security systems and processes were not a factor in this incident, and public safety was never compromised."

Hartman was caught after a Southwest employee realized she did not have a ticket, autorities said. Investigators reportedly arrested her after concluding she had no confirmed reservation or any proof she purchased a ticket.

The incident comes four months after a 15-year-old boy managed to jump the fence at Mineta San Jose and board a flight to Maui.

And although two unticketed passengers have been able to board flights, San Jose airport officials said the two incidents are different and unrelated because Hartman went through the screening process.

The TSA said it has made some minor modifications to the layout of the document-checking area to prevent another such incident.