Well, At Least He Wasn't "Reaccommodated"

[legion]

https://www.msn.com/en-us/travel/news/southwest-passenger-kicked-off-flight-for-making-vodka-joke/ar-AABlHLp

A Southwest Airlines passenger was removed from a flight at Sacramento International Airport last week after jokingly asking a flight attendant if the water being handed out was vodka.
…
"She came by and was like, 'I don’t think that and I didn’t like your joke.' Then my wife tried to butt-in there and say, 'Look it, we’ve been on this plane for hours.' And she says, 'Well, so have I, so get used to it,'" added Uzelac. "Then all of a sudden, I see her on the telephone up in front."

Uzelac said fellow passengers came to the man's defense after the plane turned back to the gate and several Sacramento County sheriff's deputies came on board to escort him off.

"And people started yelling then. In fact, people stood up. I stood up. People were saying this man didn’t do anything," he told KTXL.

The man wasn't charged with any crime but the incident prompted Uzelac to file a complaint with Southwest against the flight attendant. "If they have this in their records, you know, maybe it will prevent this from happening again," he said.

Like I've said before, you leave your rights on the curb when you enter an airport and you don't regain them until you hit the curb at your destination. Flight attendants have the power to set federal law enforcement on any passenger they don't like. It's been 5 years since I last flew. The last straw for me was having to have my entire body scanned (remember when TSA agents were trading naked pictures of passengers?). The security theater has gotten ridiculous as the only thing that prevents a hijacking is passengers fighting hijackers.

[GH85Carrera]

On my last flight the flight attendant made her typical safety speech and of course no one at all payed any attention. Then they tell everyone to turn off all electronic devices and no at all did. Most kept on texting right through to roll out and takeoff until we were too high to get a signal. They have a rule that everyone around me that I could see simply ignored.

[seafeye]

Couple years ago when the drunk pilot movie came out we had a lot of passengers make stupid remarks about drunk pilots. It was so frequent that our management came out with a memo from lawyers on how to react. If the passenger did suspect us to have had a drink we would immediately go to a drug testing station and get tested. Usually that took several hours. Especially if the testing center wasn’t on property. The flight May or may not be cancelled. Think about all the trips missed. Meetings cancelled because of one stupid comment. It’s serious stuff. We take our jobs seriously, we have to deal with TSA daily just like passengers. The noise, commotion, crowds, heat... it is all very stressful. Put that in line with sleeping in noisy hotels, home stress.... you can see how a f/a would lose it. Passengers deal with this stuff 1-5 times a year. We do it 4 times a week. Sometimes 5 flights a day.

Our 1 goal is to get you to your destination safely.



We live in a world that jokes aren’t funny. They cost fellow passengers time and money. They cost corporations millions. If you suspect vodka instead of water then say something. But you better be prepared to defend your suspicion.

On another note: ask a Starbucks employee what would happen to them if they joked about “spitting” in your drink.

[cairns]

I’ve done 248 flights in the last 12 months all over the USA. And have kicked off Zero passengers. Couple years ago when the drunk pilot movie came out we had a lot of passengers make stupid remarks about drunk pilots. It was so frequent that our management came out with a memo from lawyers on how to react. If the passenger did suspect us to have had a drink we would immediately go to a drug testing station and get tested. Usually that took several hours. Especially if the testing center wasn’t on property. The flight May or may not be cancelled. Think about all the trips missed. Meetings cancelled because of one stupid comment. It’s serious stuff. We take our jobs seriously, we have to deal with TSA daily just like passengers. The noise, commotion, crowds, heat... it is all very stressful. Put that in line with sleeping in noisy hotels, home stress.... you can see how a f/a would lose it. Passengers deal with this stuff 1-5 times a year. We do it 4 times a week. Sometimes 5 flights a day.

Our 1 goal is to get you to your destination safely.

We live in a world that jokes aren’t funny. They cost fellow passengers time and money. They cost corporations millions. If you suspect vodka instead of water then say something. But you better be prepared to defend your suspicion.

On another note: ask a Starbucks employee what would happen to them if they joked about “spitting” in your drink.

And people like you are why I now avoid US airlines at all costs. You have absolutely no sense of humor, take yourself far too seriously and think you can BS us about safety when the real goal is to make as much as you can while providing as little as possible.

BTW your Starbucks analogy doesn't cut it. It was the customer who was joking- but you're so full of it you compared it to an employee rather than the patron. All you've really done is whine about your job and submit a very lame defense of an indefensible action by another self entitled airline employee.

You and Munoz should get together and have a laugh about customer service.

[MBAtarga]

Originally Posted by seafeye

If you suspect vodka instead of water then say something. But you better be prepared to defend your suspicion.

Did you read the story? The "joke" was that the passenger wished the FA's were serving Vodka instead of water - to take the edge off the delay of the flight. It had nothing to do with the staff drinking...

[seafeye]

Ok. Go ahead and joke to TSA about having a bomb.
See how that goes.

If you saw in the first line. Zero passengers kicked off. Some people aren’t suited for greyhound, yet we accommodate everyone. Is it too much to ask for maturity and class? I don’t go to the doctor when I get my flu shot and joke that it’s heroine. Save the tasteless humor for the pub.

[1990C4S]

And now we see the great divide. Wow.

If a flight attendant can't live with travel, hotels, crowded planes and noise, maybe GTFO is the appropriate career decision?

I could live with 'that's not funny'. Calling the cops? Seriously?

If you throw someone off a plane, and that person is not charged, maybe you should be fired?

[cairns]

Ok. Go ahead and joke to TSA about having a bomb.

Another failed analogy. You really don't get it do you??

The passenger's actions did not warrant or deserve, in any way, their removal from that plane and the other passengers shouldn't have been inconvenienced (again) in order to do that.

Do you have any valid defense of the airline's actions or are you just another full of it airline employee in the wrong job?

[seafeye]

I don’t speak for Southwest. But what you read is probably 1/2 the story.
If the f/a or captain determined the passenger needed to be removed then they had a reason.
If the police were called then they probably had a reason.
Based on what we know it doesn’t sound logical to kick someone off for making a joke. It happens so rarely that I would bet that there is more to the story.

[cairns]

Wrong. They don't have to have a reason at all. Their rule is the law and it's more and more frequently being abused.

The fact is all you have are complaints about your job and no valid defense for their actions.

I've seen more than a few FAs who have no business serving the public. You sound like another one.

[seafeye]

I’m not a f/a. But look I found a story with more to it....

When a young flight attendant distributed water, Uzelac says the man seated next to him joked, “Wow, I hope that’s vodka because we’ve been sitting here for so long.”

According to Uzelac, the attendant replied brusquely, “Yeah, it’s vodka” and when she moved to another row, the man joked, “Hey, this isn’t vodka.”

The employee allegedly returned to Uzelac’s row to confront the passenger, but Uzelac’s wife spoke up. “She said something like, ‘We’re all tired here. And that’s no way to speak to a passenger,’” he tells Yahoo Lifestyle.

“They argued about it. I tried filming but my phone wasn’t working.”

So they were having an argument? What was said?

The company has procedures on how and why to remove a passenger.
The f/a doesn’t have the ability to make up their own rules. Because 1 f/a is required per 50 seats they have to work with others. Removal of a passenger will require the agreement from the other f/a’s and or the captain. I really really doubt we are getting the whole story.

Also due to the DOT extended delay program the f/a is required by law to serve water and snacks or the passengers have a right to deplane. Clock is started at door closure and 90 min is the first marker.

[1990C4S]

Ah, an argument...that says it all. That verbal sparring sounds dangerous.

The guy wasn't charged. What does that say?

[Tervuren]

Originally Posted by legion

as the only thing that prevents a hijacking is passengers fighting hijackers.

Hi-jacking pretty much stopped once policy changed from give them what they want, to beat them up and beat them down.

Once it became known the success rate of hi-jacking wasn't golden there was a change to just blowing the airplane up by sneaking the things to make explosives on board.

This is why there is the rigmarole even though hi-jacking has become ineffective because of passenger/crew response.

[Danimal16]

One basic rule of security is not to alienate those people that you are trying to secure.

[speeder]

I’m endlessly fascinated by the endless stories of problems and drama on airplanes. I’ve flown about a zillion times over 50 years and never had anything remotely similar to the problems I read about. Just nothing. Maybe it’s because it’s never occurred to me to be a big-mouth idiot on an airplane. Or maybe it’s just a coincidence. Who knows.

[Tobra]

Yeah, you come here for your "big mouthed idiot" fix

Originally Posted by seafeye

If you saw in the first line. Zero passengers kicked off.

You deleted that line one of the times you edited your post. You delete it then bring it up, but it would not be there unless someone quoted you prior to your edit.

Originally Posted by seafeye

I don’t speak for Southwest. But what you read is probably 1/2 the story.
If the f/a or captain determined the passenger needed to be removed then they had a reason.

No, they don't need a reason and yes, you are speaking for Southwest.

Air waitress can't make up their own rules, but they can make up a story to fit the requirements to get a passenger removed

Oh, and you are not helping your position at all with anything you have posted here. A closed mouth gathers no feet.

[Eric Coffey]

Originally Posted by seafeye

It’s serious stuff.

Originally Posted by seafeye

Save the tasteless humor for the pub.

Tell that to some of the F/As and their "creative" PA announcements (or, even some pilots and their PAs).

Seriously, if a F/A is that tightly-wound, and can't let harmless comments roll of their back, and/or have at least a bare-minimum sense of humor, then maybe other occupations beckon...

They are being paid to be there. The passengers are paying to be there. I'd agree that no FA should have to put up with a belligerent/drunk/combative passenger.
However, they should have the basic ability to lighten the mood and/or deescalate a situation when things get a bit testy, IMO.

[RWebb]

seafeye - thanks for getting cairns off of all US flights

I'll buy you a drink someday

[speeder]

Lol...

[cairns]

No problem. I'll take ANA, Singapore, Etihad, Emirates, QANTAS or virtually any other airline over US metal whenever I have the choice.

Enjoy your 28 inch stretch, abysmal service, flight delays and rude FAs.

Southwest used to have a sense of humor but I guess they're racing to the bottom too....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=07LFBydGjaM