I am a highly educated aerospace engineer working directly under a Federal Aviation Administration contract on research regarding civil aviation safety. On April 27, 2008 I was on the way back to my home in the United States from the international European Navigation Conference 2008 in Toulouse, France. I would like to describe to you the incident in which I was a victim of verbal abuse and physical assault by a US Airways Flight Attendant serving on Flight 755 from the Paris Charles de Gaulle airport to Philadelphia.
I consider that this was a very serious incident, not only against me personally, but regarding the safety of an entire fully booked Airbus A333 aircraft about to proceed for an intercontinental flight. This is not something US Airways will be able to settle with me simply giving me credit towards a future flight. The behavior of the flight attendant was not only unprofessional, but also illegal. I contacted the police immediately after my arrival in PHL and several misdemeanor charges could be brought forth against the A flight attendant given the facts.
I immediately wrote down a detailed description of the whole incident, while onboard the flight, and copied that recount exactly below. This is an excerpt from my notes:
“When in a flight attendant uniform, a person represents the image of US Airways as a company. Today, I have seen the image of US Airways as being represented by irate, irrational and emotionally violent people, with absolutely no regard for the law, for aviation safety regulations and for the comfort and security of their passengers. Any of the other passengers witnessing these incidents were afraid to be flying in the aircraft and will most probably agree with me that having that type of person (i.e. the A flight attendant) working aboard an airplane is simply an aviation accident waiting to happen!”
After this incident, your company will lose not just one passenger; you will lose everybody on that plane as a customer if you don’t send an apology right away. Good news travels fast, but bad news travels even faster. If firm and appropriate measures are not taken about this incident, I will not recommend your company to anyone I know, on the contrary, I will make this story public and I will seek legal recourse for the incident.
***
As I was peacefully sitting in a chair, in the gate 54 area of the Paris CDG airport, a tall, sturdy older woman showed up in my face with an irate attitude and pointed her finger at me, screaming: “YOU, COME WITH ME!” This happened in a small crowded room containing all the passengers booked on Flight 755. The people sitting right next to me, who witnessed the entire incident and who later boarded the plane right ahead of me were a couple assigned to seats 35 A and B.
Reacting to this woman’s verbal aggression, I calmly asked: “What’s happening? What is this all about?” As she was walking away, she continued to scream at me: “Come with me if you want to fly to Philadelphia today!” I had never seen this woman before in my life; I didn’t know who she was or what her problem was. She seemed very enraged, and I immediately didn’t feel comfortable following her anywhere or interacting with her in private. Seconds later she returned, screaming at me and demanding that I follow her. Again, I responded calmly, without getting out of my seat: “What is this all about? What did I do?” After she kept walking away and then coming back screaming at me a couple of more times, at last I felt the need to stand up from my seat, though she still physically dominated me even when we were both standing. I was very unsettled, felt apprehensive and was decided not to go anywhere with her without a calm explanation. All that she was screaming at me was: “You are not going to Philadelphia today if you don’t come with me immediately! … I will call the airport police and will get you arrested, you will see!”
I am 28 years old and I will not respond to anyone employing angry kindergarten teacher tactics and unfounded threats in order to bully or intimidate me. All that this agitated woman could respond upon my repeated inquiries was: “You know very well what you did! Come with me immediately!” I was stunned and I had no idea what the matter was all about. I followed her for a few metres with the intention to find out, but then she quickly disappeared around a corner in the hallway leading to the gate area, and very confused I returned to my seat. I had no idea how to respond to her sudden aggressivity…
At that point, I saw another man wearing a white shirt and uniform pants watching me from a few steps away and pretending to talk on his cell phone. Assuming he was some sort of an official, I stood up and I tried to gently approach him and ask him if he had an idea of what was going on. At that point, the old woman showed up again from behind a column and continued to scream at me. Accompanied by the “official” man I agreed to follow her around the corner of the airline service desk counter. On the way there I kept inquiring what the situation was about. All that the old woman told me was: “You know very well what you did! You are an idiot wearing a stupid T-shirt!” She kept being pissed, telling me she will not let me on the airplane… All that I was able to get from her was: “You were wearing that stupid T-shirt in front of one of our crew members and if you’re not coming with me, I’ll call the police and you are not getting onto this flight!”, “I’m a security officer and have been working for this airline for over 30 years”, “You are just an idiot and my colleague worked for this airline for 30 years and you have no right to treat her like that!”… At that point, I was visibly shaking with all my body in response to the emotional abuse I had been subjected to and the humiliation in front of all the other passengers. Her behavior fell directly under the definition of emotional violence: she singled me out, infantilized me and told me I am an intrinsically bad person. This type of emotional harm is as unpardonable as direct physical harm.
However, as an airline passenger who takes air safety very seriously, I realized that an irate airline/airport employee like this one could not only place in danger my own life, but also endanger the life of all the other passengers aboard flight US755 to Philadelphia, since it is not safe for aircraft to take off while the passengers and possibly the flight crew are subjected to such an emotional overload. Therefore, I offered to apologize for whatever this woman thought that I have done and have this whole matter be over (though for all she had told me I was an idiot wearing a stupid T-shirt and that was sufficient in her view to call the Paris CDG police to arrest me). I knew very well that US Airways does not have any dress code on its flights and the woman in front of me probably did not have any official authority to treat me abusively like that.
The episode in the airport left me visibly shaking, both as the older woman accosted me and afterwards, as I sat down and tried to get over the emotional flooding. I was not treated courteously, not with respect and not like an adult, and also not according to US or international laws.
Although I was never requested to do so, I put on another white long-sleeve shirt on top of my T-shirt. I did not take off the white shirt on top until I got home later that night. The T-shirt design is something very common, and I had been wearing it for more than 10 years without anyone ever mentioning something negative about it. Here is a picture of the design on my T-shirt: http://imagecache2.allposters.com/images/151/910_a.jpg
Once I got aboard the airplane and was silently sitting in my assigned seat, reading a book with the seatbelt fastened, the same woman came over to me as soon as the aircraft started moving. Only at this point had I realized that all those with whom I interacted in the terminal (the older woman and the guy in white shirt) were actually flight attendants assigned to my flight and not security agents as they pretended to be. As an aside: A fellow passenger later told me that she has worked herself for US Airways for over ten years, and that the old woman was most likely the A Flight Attendant. This passenger was very helpful to me and did everything she could to help me get over the emotional abuse. She said that she is offended that someone could hurt the image of US Airways to such an extent, and that in her 10+ years of service with the company she never saw a similar incident. The worst incident she had was with an angry passenger who did not want to check in an oversize bag, and consequently attacked her physically and then hurled his bag at her. The oversize carry-on was taken off the airplane, but the passenger was allowed to fly.
Now, I was calmly sitting in my assigned seat, 25F after politely introducing myself to the passenger next to me – she was exhausted and tried to go to sleep while I was reading a book called “Emotional Intelligence”. The airplane was taxiing towards the take-off runway when the psychotic old woman showed up next to me again and started assaulting me unprovoked, going as far as making violent physical contact with me, and demanding that I apologize to a second flight attendant standing behind my seat and looking very amused at the whole situation. (I have clearly seen this 2nd attendant laughing out loudly and making jokes both before and after passengers boarded the plane). As the A Flight Attendant now threatened to stop the plane from taking off (this was practically a hijacking attempt), and as it is my obligation to respect exactly the flight crew instructions, and after being physically assaulted and verbally threatened multiple times, I said “I apologize”, no matter how humiliating and hurtful this whole situation was to me… Is it acceptable to periclitate the safety and comfort of an entire airplane for the sake of a personal apology?
Here is the exact recount of the conversation in the airplane (the words of the A Flight Attendant in quotation marks, my words italicized):
– “You haven’t apologized to her as you promised me. I will stop the plane and you are not going to Philadelphia today!”
– Can you please tell me your names and what this is all about?
– (screaming) “I promised you that you will not get to your destination if you don’t make an apology”
– Can you please calm down and explain to me what is happening?
– “You changed your T-shirt, but if you don’t apologize I will stop this flight and abort take-off [n.b. after leaving the gate]. Do you apologize or do you want us to turn around?”
– …
– (as plane is moving down the runway, making herself heard to all passengers aboard) “You will apologize right now, or I will turn this plane around”
– (without meaning it, thinking it is the best course of action for everyone involved) I apologize…
– “That’s what I wanted to hear!” Leaves…
Besides verbally assaulting me, the A flight attendant also became physically threatening, hitting me over the head (which knocked off my hat), at which point I said “I apologize” just to diffuse the situation… The passengers sitting next to me said that they were themselves very distressed by the incident, and even other flight attendants present at the scene looked visibly uncomfortable and embarrassed. (Except for the female flight attendant on the opposite aisle, who responded to the name Chris, I wasn’t able to obtain the names of any other flight attendants on this flight since they refuse to give their names and they did not wear a name tag either on their shirts or on the apron. Please investigate these incidents and communicate to me what was the exact identity of the flight attendants involved).
After the incident on the plane I immediately wrote down everything that had happened, to the best of my recollection. Upon my request, the two female flight attendants repeatedly refused to identify themselves either by name or by their official function. Only after seeing both of them aboard the airplane was I able to guess they were actually flight crew members. Their attitude towards me throughout the incident was brazen, rude and extremely aggressive. It was unbelievable to me that I was subjected to such a verbal assault, outrageous language and threats that I will be denied boarding (without a valid reason) just because of an airline employee’s bad temper, going as far as to threaten that she will get me arrested by airport police.
The fact that none of these threats were carried out only proves that in reality I didn’t do anything that could cause such an egregious reaction on the part of the A flight attendant. In fact, all passengers sitting around me on the plane agreed that no matter what had happened, nothing could justify her reacting the way she did. I briefly lifted my white shirt and showed the T-shirt in question to neighboring passengers and the unanimous opinion was that it was funny but not offensive. Besides, as angry as the A flight attendant was towards me, if I had actually stepped out of line and done something inappropriate, I have no doubt that they would have in fact asked for me to be arrested by the airport police. Instead, I was physically and verbally assaulted and was asked to apologize or they would stop the flight, as the plane was on the runway preparing to take off.
Earlier, in the airport gate area, I hadn’t realized which colleague the Lead Flight Attendant was referring to, until they both came to me on the airplane. That was the first time I realized there might have been a connection between the incident in the boarding area and this second flight attendant who saw me and my T-shirt while I was going through the security screen. Honestly, I did not look down at my T-shirt the entire time I was in the airport, but I realized when approached in the airplane that this second flight attendant might have gone to the crew leader before boarding and complained about the T-shirt I had on before getting on the plane. I don’t know what exactly she told the older woman with a foul temper, but I made sure to ask all my neighboring passengers if there was something wrong with my T-shirt, and all of them agreed that there was nothing inappropriate with the shirt.
The second flight attendant involved in this incident was also a tall female, larger in size, with blue eyes and braided grey-blonde hair. She initially bumped into me at the hand luggage security checkpoint. Right before the checkpoint, there was a moving walkway going between the main airport terminal and the departure gates, about 200 yds long. I was alone on the belt right next to the two pilots of my flight. Close to the end of the walkway I turned around to check my carry-on luggage and noticed that there was absolutely no one else following us for the length of the moving walkway. We then reached the X-Ray machine and I moved out of the way to let the flight captains go ahead through security. The two pilots were taking their time. I had my items in plastic bins and just as my turn came at the entrance of the X-Ray scanner, a large woman in an airline uniform came running from behind me, bumped into me and rudely pushed me aside without even saying anything, not even “Pardon!” I let her go ahead of me through the security checkpoint as she seemed ready to initiate a physical confrontation just to be able to cut ahead of me (I’d like to mention again that there was no one else behind me except her). I quietly waited for the woman to take off her coat and shoes, as she seemed to be running late and in a great hurry. After I went through the metal detector myself, as she looked like she could be flight crew, I asked her what airline she was with. She said “US Airways” and continued in a rude tone, starting a whole rant, most of which I didn’t catch, as she left in a hurry and I was stopped for a pat check by the airport security attendant. After they made sure I had no metals on me, I got my hand bag and immediately went and sat down in a corner of the crowded waiting room, quietly waiting for the boarding to start. 10-15 minutes later, right as they were preparing to commence boarding, the older woman suddenly showed up and started badgering me.
After the second incident, the one on board the airplane, I noticed that the A flight attendant was working mostly in the front of the airplane, in first class, but she came to the back a couple of times during the rest of the flight. She seemed to be in a really bad disposition the entire time, and at the end of the flight I actually noticed her rudely bumping into another passenger sitting in the opposite aisle and talking to him in an angry voice. The passengers sitting next to me also noticed how inappropriately this older flight attendant was treating customers and reassured me they would also make complaints to the airline.
Everyone sitting around me in the gate area and on the airplane can testify that the facts I presented here are real and accurate. I can personally mention a number of people who witnessed the scenes: the couple assigned to seats 35 A, B I noticed were waiting in the boarding area right next to me, and on the airplane people seated in my immediate vicinity: 24 E-H, 25 A-H, 26 C-H witnessed the incredible scene and said that were uncomfortable for the entire duration of the flight. My neighbor in 25E was unable to sleep for the 8 hours of the flight following the incident during departure. Although I am sure US Airways has access to the names of the two flight attendants in question, as well as to those of all passengers, I also took down names and contact info for my records (I will only give initials here for privacy reasons):
24E – B.C.
24F – C.W., both from the
25C – K.H.
25D – C.S.
25E – J.M., all three from
***
At the end of the flight I had this throbbing headache and strong nausea and I was actually worried that they put something in my food or drinks. Given that fact, once I started feeling sick aboard flight 755, I refused any further food or drinks from this second flight attendant who was actually serving on my aisle. I felt it was safer for me to refuse service even at the risk of serious dehydration. The neighboring passengers in my row also advised me it would be safer to refuse service.
After these incidents, I now feel completely uncomfortable at the sight of any US Airways employee, as their uniforms and badges remind me of the traumatizing experience I had on flight 755 on 4/27/08. The bad taste and emotional commotion were caused by the fact that these two crew members didn’t treat me like a customer, they treated me like an idiot who does not know that an airplane cannot be turned around and one cannot be denied boarding without a legitimate reason. They had absolutely no reason to heckle me, other than that some US Airways employees show up to work late and in a bad temper and then they take out their frustrations with the job on the passengers in a totally inappropriate manner, by making threats and endangering the safety of everyone on board of an intercontinental airplane for the sake of their personal issues.
I am shocked that after 30 years with your company, these two flight attendants still do not have the necessary training to handle customers appropriately and courteously. Please make sure that the Lead Flight Attendant woman receives all the help she needs, as she might have been subjected herself to serious abuse in her childhood, but please do not let her interact anymore with patrons or other US Airways employees until she receives this help!
I will first need to see that this matter is addressed appropriately before I feel even comfortable climbing aboard a US Airways flight again. Until then, I will not accept any form of future flight credit as a settlement of this matter. To put things in perspective, you should think how much cost your airline would incur for a passenger who is unjustifiably denied boarding, and all the negative impact this story would have if it became public. Also consider what would be the costs to the airline if a flight attendant with a bad temper like this one interferes with the normal flight operations (she threatened to turn the plane around repeatedly), and for the rest of the 8 hours of flight that airplane has been shaking continuously over the ocean… Making a scene like this and getting all the passengers, flight crew and pilots nervous can only increase the chances of an aviation disaster. I have enough witnesses to be able to go to court over this matter, if it is not resolved satisfactorily by your company within the next 15 days.
My request is that your airline company does the following:
- 1. sends a feedback request ASAP to all passengers aboard the flight 755 on 4/27/08, regarding service both during the flight and during check-in at the gate;
- 2. sends an apology to all passengers who felt uncomfortable about the flight attendants’ behavior;
- 3. sends me a personal and sincere written apology from the two US Airways employees who were rude to me and whose actions were inappropriate. As I continue to be concerned for my personal safety, please do not give these flight attendants access to any of my contact information. I trust your company to forward their apology while respecting my personal privacy;
- 4. issues me a full refund of my airfare for this trip. I feel I am entitled to a full refund due to the following reasons:
- Given the incidents described above, I was unable and felt unsafe receiving any service from your airline’s flight crews on flight 755 and subsequent flights. That means no food, no drinks and no other services.
- On my previous flight with US Airways, I also received very poor customer service from the airline personnel at the MUC airport, and was given a $250 electronic voucher so I try your company’s services again. They have not gotten better!
- I also had major reservation problems when booking this flight: I called to make a telephone reservation on March 4th 2008, booked my itinerary and was promised email confirmation within 48 hours for a fare of $936.19. Three weeks later I had received no email, no confirmation number and was honestly afraid I did not have a reservation at all and that my conversation with your agent on March 4th was a complete hoax. Only after I called in again about 3 times was I given my confirmation code and could access reservation confirmation on the website, stating the price of my flight was now $1,372.62. As late as 3 days after my first flight in this trip, on April 24th, I finally received an email confirmation that changed again the price of the flight, this time by almost $700!!! If your company is committed at all to customer service and to providing passengers a different experience from mine, I would expect you to refund my fare and leave the choice of flying US Airways entirely to me, instead of enticing me with incentives that have absolutely no cash value.
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