A flight attendant has called out passengers for their “disgusting” behaviour during a flight delay and threatened to have them arrested, according to a series of viral videos.
American Airlines flight 2511 departed Los Angeles and was headed for Charlotte on 7 June when it was forced to divert to Raleigh due to bad weather, as documented in a series of videos posted to TikTok by Brent Underwood.
The plane circled Charlotte airport for half an hour before diverting to Raleigh because it was low on fuel.
In a video caption, Underwood said a 22-year-old male passenger called a flight attendant a “fat gorilla” and said “suck my d***” when he was asked to wear a mask.
“I need all of your attention right now,” a male flight attendant said in one video.
“One of the things I will not tolerate is disrespect to any of my flight attendants … we will go back to the gate and you will get arrested if you disrespect flight attendants.
“When we tell you to put on a mask, which is a federal mandate, you need to comply.”
Another clip shows a male flight attendant responding to a passenger calling him a “drama queen”.
“We’re going back to the gate,” he said, as passengers booed and groaned.
“We’re sorry!” one passenger can be heard yelling.
@brentunderwoodFlight attendants on @officialamericanairways are done with your b.s.! From our flight 6/7 LAX-NC. ##americanairlines ##facemask ##dumbcustomers♬ original sound – Brent Underwood
The main video, which has clocked 1.2 million views on TikTok, shows the male flight attendant standing near the cockpit speaking over the PA.
“It’s not all of us,” one passenger can be heard saying.
“I said we’re sorry,” said another.
“Just like you, we have not eaten … since we’ve been delayed here, we’ve catered to you the entire flight and we do it because we love this job,” the flight attendant said.
“But the fact that we get insulted by passengers over things we can’t control, it is disgusting.
“We’re just trying to go to Charlotte … shame on the passengers that have made this flight a living hell for flight attendants.”
The flight attendant’s speech was met with applause and shouting from passengers.
In a statement to Travel Weekly, American Airlines said its crew members “work hard to uphold the federal mask mandate”.
“We value the trust our customers place in our team to care for them throughout their journey, and we expect those who choose to fly with us to treat each other ― and our team members ― with respect,” it said.
A spokeswoman for Raleigh Durham Airport told The Charlotte Observer that no passengers were removed from the flight or arrested.
Passengers arrived in Charlotte almost 10 hours after the flight’s scheduled arrival time.
Featured image source: TikTok/Brentunderwood
