Sure most doctors would recommend against it, but most would also admit that there isn't much risk to flying while pregnant. You might not make it to a hospital, but many women give birth outside of hospitals.
Airlines recommend against it because a woman in childbirth can make the other passengers uncomfortable, and in the case of complications, they might have to alter their landing destination, to seek medical help, not because of risk to the baby.
Saying the woman should be prosecuted for child endangerment is ridiculous. Pregnant women fly every day without incident. Determining the date a baby will be born is not an exact science, they come early and late. I'm sure the doctors told your wife this as well. The woman may have planned to have the child while in the US, but I doubt seriously that she wanted to have the baby in flight.