The skies were extra unfriendly that day.
A United Airlines flight attendant has been shamed online after allegedly refusing to help an elderly disabled passenger with her cane — and then attempting to have her removed when she complained. A fly-witness detailed the “upsetting incident” in a Reddit post that’s currently taking off online.
“I feel so bad for the disabled lady,” the unnamed first-class passenger wrote. “It was heartbreaking to watch someone who just needed a little help get treated like that.”
According to the poster, the senior had a “small purse and a fully collapsed cane that she needed help putting into the overhead bin” because there was no under-seat storage in the first-class bulkhead where she was sitting.
Federal Aviation Administration regulations prohibit passengers from keeping personal items at their feet.
When the woman “politely” asked a flight attendant for assistance, the female crewmember got “super defensive and aggressive” and proceeded to lay into her, per the post.
“[She started] saying something like ‘ABSOLUTELY NOT, I CANNOT DO THAT DUE TO UNION REGULATIONS, WHAT IF I GET INJURED, MA’AM, MAAAAAAM!!!’” the Redditor wrote.
Despite the tirade, the lady remained “calm” and explained that she only needed help because “she’s disabled and can’t do it herself.” She added that she’d never had issues when making this request before.
Nonetheless, the flight attendant “kept insisting that lady was being unreasonable,” per the Redditor, who said that eventually another passenger silently stood up and stowed her cane and bag in the bin.
At that moment, the incensed flight attendant “angrily slammed the bins closed and stomped back to her jump seat.”
Unfortunately, she wasn’t done raising hell, per the post. The plane already pulled away from the gate, and appeared ready to depart, when the pilot came on the intercom and announced that “there had been an incident and we’re heading back to the gate.”
Security then boarded the plane and approached the disabled passenger, informing her that the air hostess had accused the woman of “talking down” to her.
“Everyone around was stunned — it was exactly the opposite (the FA was the one who was being aggressive and yelling at this poor old lady),” the Redditor wrote.
Accompanying footage shot by the eyewitness shows the elderly woman calmly explaining her case to the security officer as her seatmate corroborates her story.
Fortunately, security didn’t view her as a threat and the plane was cleared to push back from the gate again. It was at that point that the “FA then gave the safety announcement in the most eerie, overly cheerful, almost sociopathic-sounding voice I’ve ever heard,” the Redditor recalled.
The eyewitness said that they were “really bothered” by the FA’s refusal, especially as the lady’s belongings probably weighed “probably 2lbs each tops.”
“Even if the FA can’t do it, she could’ve calmly said ‘I’m so sorry, I’m not allowed to do it, maybe someone else can assist” rather than get super agro and call security,’” the Redditor declared.
The Reddit commenters ripped the flight attendant for her alleged dereliction of duty.
“What a hill to die on. I’ve seen FA’s literally rearrange entire overhead bins. Strange,” said one.
Another wrote, “I’ve literally never seen an FA not help in this exact situation.”
Other viewers urged the eyewitness to report the crewmember. “Please report this today,” urged one comment section Samaritan. “This employee needs to be removed from service. Being abusive under the cloak of authority is one of the worst traits in a human. Doubly so when done against a handicapped and elderly person.”
Meanwhile, a few armchair experts pointed out that airlines are required to help flyers with disabilities.
Indeed, the experts at flight blog A View From The Wing dismissed the flight attendant’s excuse for not lending a hand.
They wrote that while crew members aren’t required to help passengers with their luggage, Department Of Transportation regulations dictate that airlines must assist disabled passengers with certain requests.
These include “moving to or from the lavatory, including using an on-board chair to assist” and “stowing and retrieving carry-on items, including assistive devices,” per the guidelines.
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