Anil Uskanli, who put a blanket over his head and allegedly tried to force his way into first class on a Los Angeles-Honolulu flight Friday, will be sent for a competency evaluation in a federal prison facility on the mainland, a federal magistrate ordered today.

Uskanli was escorted into Judge Barry Kurren’s courtroom in Honolulu for his initial court appearance this afternoon with his hands in front of him, shackled at the waist. He was barefooted and wore a short-sleeved, white jumpsuit.

At the request of his public defender, Uskanli was ordered onto a mainland-bound, prison flight to undergo a competency evaluation in a mainland facility, possibly in Los Angeles, said his attorney, Peter Wolff.

“I think he needs some actual treatment,” Wolff told Kurren.

Kurren scheduled a status conference for 30 days, but Wolff later told reporters outside of court that, “realistically it’s 45 days before anything’s going to happen with this case.”

Before his brief court appearance began, Uskanli sat in the jury box throwing his long hair back. During the proceeding, he often bowed his head, with his hair hanging over his face.

Uskanli did not speak but was offered the services of a Turkish interpreter.

The interpreter, Engin Turkalp, told Wolff before the court session, “He knows English.”

Later, Wolff told Kurren that “Mr. Uskanli actually speaks pretty good English. … There’s some serious questions about his competency.”

The 25-year-old Turkish man is accused of intimidating and interfering with the flight crew aboard American Airlines Flight 31. He is expected to appear in U.S. District Court in Honolulu later today on the complaint, which was filed by the U.S. attorneys Saturday.

According to the court document, Uskanli was the first passenger to board, and was brought to the plane in a wheelchair because authorities decided he was under the influence of drugs and or alcohol after he walked into a restricted area of the airport.

Uskanli tried to sit in first class but eventually agreed to sit in his assigned seat in economy. Witnesses told authorities that he began acting strangely, including talking about being a famous actor and muttering to himself, and repeatedly moving his laptop around.

While using the restroom, he did not lock the door and a fellow passenger entered, according to the complaint. Uskanli became agitated, yelling and pounding on the walls, and the captain locked down the flight deck for security.

Later, Uskanli wrapped a blanket around his head, picked up his laptop and headed for the front of the plane, but was stopped by a flight attendant and her drink cart. He was subdued with the help of other passengers, including an off-duty law enforcement officer. The off-duty officer walked him back to his seat and stayed with him for the rest of the flight.

The indictment notes that flight attendants were frightened that the laptop might be used as a bomb. Laptops recently have been identified as a potential threat to airline security because they may be used to smuggle explosives aboard.

The captain implemented emergency measures for a bomb threat, and flight attendants removed the laptop and barricaded it with flight crew bags. Military fighter jets escorted the flight to landing.

After he was taken into custody, Uskanli consented to a urinalysis, field sobriety test and interview with FBI agents, according to court documents. His urine was “presumptively positive for benzodiazepine,” a tranquilizer used to treat anxiety and other conditions. The sobriety test indicated his “possible use of stimulants and/or cannabis.”

During the interview, Uskanli was asked if he ever had terroristic thoughts and he responded “We all have those ideas.” Asked if he planned to hurt anybody, he responded, “It depends on the day.”

Later in the interview, in response to a similar question, he made a gun shape with his fingers and pretended to shoot the agent who was interviewing him, according to the document. He also pointed at her and said, “I’ll kill her, get out the following day, and shoot myself.”

Turkey’s Andalou news agency reported Sunday that Uskanli studied film and journalism in California and London.

Criminal complaint against Anil Uskanli by Honolulu Star-Advertiser on Scribd