Witness to airline incident - incident described. January 19, 2008 2:20 PM Subscribe
As promised from this thread on AskMeFi, my recollections from a disgraceful episode on Alaska Airlines (long).
In spite of advertising in the places that seem logical, I never found the family involved in this incident and therefore it would seem there's not going to be any action from anybody. Here's the "memo to file" I wrote based on brain_drain's suggestion.
I'm writing down impressions from my flight on Alaska Airlines' flight 299 from Cancun to San Francisco in order to capture as much detail as possible about an incident that occurred on it. The chronology might be a little bit out of order early on because I was not paying too close attention then. I wrote this beginning at 2030 on 3 December 2007.
The flight was on 2 December 2007. It left Cancun about 1900 local, after a short delay and a gate change. The airplane was a single-aisle Boeing 737-800 or 737-900. I sat in seat 8D and my partner sat in 8E. 8D is a right-hand aisle seat with a view up the aisle toward the first-class cabin and the door to the flight deck. On my right in seat 8C was a thirtyish, rather tan man about 5'10" tall, with honey-colored hair. He had for some time the whole row to himself. I wrote down the name of only one of the flight attendants, Thomas H. His badge identified him as Thomas H., there was a title on the badge below his name, and it had a large 3-08 notation on it. Thomas H. looks like he might have been a linebacker at some point. He is about 6'3", 220 lb, and his arms are skinny for his size and are also getting flabby. He has curly light brown hair and a light brown mustache. He wore a white shirt and a dark blue pair of trousers.
During the usual airplane flight safety briefing I commented to my partner "these people sure seem naggy." They had done nothing unusual up to that point but something bothered me about the briefing's delivery, which was conducted by a thirtyish woman with dyed red hair. She was evidently working mainly in first class. At some point a scrim was erected between first class and coach, but this scrim was transparent and I could watch everything going on in first class. Aisle 6 was the first row of the coach seating and this scrim was set up in front of row 6.
I'd only halfway paid attention to events in the cabin but soon I began to think there were too many announcements - first from the woman with the dyed red hair and then from someone who said he was the pilot - that people must remain in their seats when the seat belt sign is lit and they must not use bathrooms in other than their assigned class of seating. I thought a blonde woman had left first class - she must have been in seat 3A or 4A - and gone to the back of the airplane and I have a hazy recollection that she wore a nearly white long-sleeved top with a dark belt. There was a little more traffic including a thin fifteen-year old boy with an emo mop of straight, very dark brown hair. There followed more announcements about not using the wrong bathroom and staying in one's seat. The airplane bounced around a little bit. Shortly thereafter the blonde went back to her seat. I then noticed the red-dyed woman talking with her and from her body language I got the impression she was lecturing the woman. She and Thomas H. went to the front of the airplane and conferred; then Thomas H. charged - not walked, charged - back to her hissing "YOU CAN GO TO THE BATHROOM". He was bent forward at the waist and he had contorted his face angrily. He turned around and walked to the front of the airplane. There followed more announcements about how people mustn't use the wrong bathroom AT ALL, nor form any kind of line near them, nor even go from first class to coach, nor get up while the seat belt light was on. The male sitting next to the blonde went to the scrim and conferred with two boys, one of whom was the fifteen-year-old with the emo haircut. There followed even more announcements about the seat belt light.
Shortly after these events there was an announcement about how people should not block the wheeled cart the staff used to transport drinks. I commented to my partner about the rudeness of such an announcement. At this point I began to think someone was using the seat belt light as a goad to annoy passengers, since the flight had been smooth for some time. Drinks were duly passed and so were more announcements. I commented to my partner that the staff seemed to have an authority complex and were rude even by US standards.
After a few minutes the cart passed by again. During this second passage of the cart I was doused with ice water by a female staff member. This female staff member was fortyish, with dyed blonde hair and a wide mouth. This following paragraph is easy for me to remember because of the dousing. I looked up, probably with an annoyed expression, and said nothing. She apologized at once, and Thomas H. got two paper towels to help me sop up the water. She told me "it was nothing but ice water and it will dry soon"; I said "yes, but by the time it does I will be cold because this airplane is too cold and the water was too." My partner asked if she could find me a blanket and she said "there aren't any more." Thomas H. said "oh, forget about it". I took out my phone and noted Thomas H's name. The cart passed. The woman said "look, now he's writing something, is he writing down my name?" Thomas H. said "just forget about him."
The water dried off, for a time I was a little cold, then I warmed up and fell asleep. Some time later the woman who spilled the water on me came back with a form headed "Empowerment" something-or-other and said "if you fill out this form the airline will send you a voucher for a future trip and I am sorry I spilled the water on you." I told her "I don't care to fill out this form, but I will be writing a letter discussing the poor relationship this crew has with its passengers." She said "I didn't know we had a poor relationship like that" and I said "you do". I did not note her name.
Later I noted that people were milling around in the airplane even though the seat belt sign and several announcements were passed. I did not see any of these other people threatened by Thomas H. or chastized by the dyed red woman.
During the announcements before landing the red-dyed woman said "even after we are stopped you must stay in your seats until the seat belt sign is turned off." My partner noted that this was weird and I said "I bet these idiots will have the US marshals meet the flight and remove that woman (pointing to the blonde in the white top)". They did. The pilot - who looks like a lineman with W. C. Fields' head grafted on, about 5'10" and at least 220 lb - stood in the doorway to the flight deck looking smug while the marshal took the crying woman, her seat partner, and the two boys off the airplane.
When I was leaving the airplane I heard one of the airport police say "look, no crime has been committed here...".
Finished at 2150 on 3 December 2007.
In spite of advertising in the places that seem logical, I never found the family involved in this incident and therefore it would seem there's not going to be any action from anybody. Here's the "memo to file" I wrote based on brain_drain's suggestion.
I'm writing down impressions from my flight on Alaska Airlines' flight 299 from Cancun to San Francisco in order to capture as much detail as possible about an incident that occurred on it. The chronology might be a little bit out of order early on because I was not paying too close attention then. I wrote this beginning at 2030 on 3 December 2007.
The flight was on 2 December 2007. It left Cancun about 1900 local, after a short delay and a gate change. The airplane was a single-aisle Boeing 737-800 or 737-900. I sat in seat 8D and my partner sat in 8E. 8D is a right-hand aisle seat with a view up the aisle toward the first-class cabin and the door to the flight deck. On my right in seat 8C was a thirtyish, rather tan man about 5'10" tall, with honey-colored hair. He had for some time the whole row to himself. I wrote down the name of only one of the flight attendants, Thomas H. His badge identified him as Thomas H., there was a title on the badge below his name, and it had a large 3-08 notation on it. Thomas H. looks like he might have been a linebacker at some point. He is about 6'3", 220 lb, and his arms are skinny for his size and are also getting flabby. He has curly light brown hair and a light brown mustache. He wore a white shirt and a dark blue pair of trousers.
During the usual airplane flight safety briefing I commented to my partner "these people sure seem naggy." They had done nothing unusual up to that point but something bothered me about the briefing's delivery, which was conducted by a thirtyish woman with dyed red hair. She was evidently working mainly in first class. At some point a scrim was erected between first class and coach, but this scrim was transparent and I could watch everything going on in first class. Aisle 6 was the first row of the coach seating and this scrim was set up in front of row 6.
I'd only halfway paid attention to events in the cabin but soon I began to think there were too many announcements - first from the woman with the dyed red hair and then from someone who said he was the pilot - that people must remain in their seats when the seat belt sign is lit and they must not use bathrooms in other than their assigned class of seating. I thought a blonde woman had left first class - she must have been in seat 3A or 4A - and gone to the back of the airplane and I have a hazy recollection that she wore a nearly white long-sleeved top with a dark belt. There was a little more traffic including a thin fifteen-year old boy with an emo mop of straight, very dark brown hair. There followed more announcements about not using the wrong bathroom and staying in one's seat. The airplane bounced around a little bit. Shortly thereafter the blonde went back to her seat. I then noticed the red-dyed woman talking with her and from her body language I got the impression she was lecturing the woman. She and Thomas H. went to the front of the airplane and conferred; then Thomas H. charged - not walked, charged - back to her hissing "YOU CAN GO TO THE BATHROOM". He was bent forward at the waist and he had contorted his face angrily. He turned around and walked to the front of the airplane. There followed more announcements about how people mustn't use the wrong bathroom AT ALL, nor form any kind of line near them, nor even go from first class to coach, nor get up while the seat belt light was on. The male sitting next to the blonde went to the scrim and conferred with two boys, one of whom was the fifteen-year-old with the emo haircut. There followed even more announcements about the seat belt light.
Shortly after these events there was an announcement about how people should not block the wheeled cart the staff used to transport drinks. I commented to my partner about the rudeness of such an announcement. At this point I began to think someone was using the seat belt light as a goad to annoy passengers, since the flight had been smooth for some time. Drinks were duly passed and so were more announcements. I commented to my partner that the staff seemed to have an authority complex and were rude even by US standards.
After a few minutes the cart passed by again. During this second passage of the cart I was doused with ice water by a female staff member. This female staff member was fortyish, with dyed blonde hair and a wide mouth. This following paragraph is easy for me to remember because of the dousing. I looked up, probably with an annoyed expression, and said nothing. She apologized at once, and Thomas H. got two paper towels to help me sop up the water. She told me "it was nothing but ice water and it will dry soon"; I said "yes, but by the time it does I will be cold because this airplane is too cold and the water was too." My partner asked if she could find me a blanket and she said "there aren't any more." Thomas H. said "oh, forget about it". I took out my phone and noted Thomas H's name. The cart passed. The woman said "look, now he's writing something, is he writing down my name?" Thomas H. said "just forget about him."
The water dried off, for a time I was a little cold, then I warmed up and fell asleep. Some time later the woman who spilled the water on me came back with a form headed "Empowerment" something-or-other and said "if you fill out this form the airline will send you a voucher for a future trip and I am sorry I spilled the water on you." I told her "I don't care to fill out this form, but I will be writing a letter discussing the poor relationship this crew has with its passengers." She said "I didn't know we had a poor relationship like that" and I said "you do". I did not note her name.
Later I noted that people were milling around in the airplane even though the seat belt sign and several announcements were passed. I did not see any of these other people threatened by Thomas H. or chastized by the dyed red woman.
During the announcements before landing the red-dyed woman said "even after we are stopped you must stay in your seats until the seat belt sign is turned off." My partner noted that this was weird and I said "I bet these idiots will have the US marshals meet the flight and remove that woman (pointing to the blonde in the white top)". They did. The pilot - who looks like a lineman with W. C. Fields' head grafted on, about 5'10" and at least 220 lb - stood in the doorway to the flight deck looking smug while the marshal took the crying woman, her seat partner, and the two boys off the airplane.
When I was leaving the airplane I heard one of the airport police say "look, no crime has been committed here...".
Finished at 2150 on 3 December 2007.
This post was deleted for the following reason: You might want to post this in the ask mefi thread itself, or post on your personal site, or keep private until any investigations are over. MetaTalk isn't really for this kind of thing. -- mathowie
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