Johnna Woolfolk , a jealous wife from California, allegedly called in a bomb threat to prevent her husband getting on a plane from Los Angeles to Atlanta, where she believed he was to visit his mistress.

In a last ditch attempt to save her marriage of 30 years, Johnna Woolfolk called AirTran Airways on November 27 and said her husband was carrying a bomb, the FBI said.

But her romantic gesture didn’t quite work out like the movies.

Johnna Woolfolk’s husband, who was intercepted at the airport, explained he was having marital problems, the Torrance Daily Breeze reported. She has now been charged with providing false and misleading information.

The woman broke down in tears after authorities replayed her conversation with the AirTran operator, according to FBI Special Agent David Gates.

“She stated that she was not thinking, she did not want to hurt anyone and did not want to cause harm,” David Gates wrote in an affidavit.

Defence attorney Gordon E. Turner said on Thursday that Johnna Woolfolk, who is about 50, admitted in court and to the FBI that she made the call.

“She now realizes it was wrong,” Gordon E. Turner said.

Johnna Woolfolk is caring for her dying mother at the couple’s Lynwood home and it has been stressful, the attorney said.

She also believes he is having an affair and was boarding the flight to meet the woman, the lawyer said.

Johnna Woolfolk is expected to plead guilty during a January 9 hearing having struck a plea bargain, US attorney’s office spokesman Thom Mrozek told the Torrance Daily Breeze.