United Airlines attendant hospitalized after mom yelling toddler ‘needs to throw up’ attacked her mid-air
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS: A United Airways passenger caused chaos on a flight after screaming that her toddler needed to throw up, leading to a physical altercation with flight attendants and hospitalizing three people on the plane. The incident occurred on a flight from San Francisco to Chicago on Sunday, Nov. 13, as the plane was preparing to land. The woman began screaming that her toddler was throwing up, but the flight attendants insisted that the woman sit down.
The woman got into a physical altercation with the flight attendants. Police were swiftly informed about a disturbance on United Flight 476, them woman was then removed by Chicago police after the plane landed at Chicago's O'Hare airport. It is unclear what triggered the woman's meltdown.
READ MORE
'I heard a big bang': Plane crashes into building killing all aboard as residents flee massive fire
Flight attendant assaulted on @united flight 476 that just landed in Chicago at @fly2ohare. pic.twitter.com/4ksmKl5PAC
— Peter Kondelis (@PeterKondelis) November 13, 2022
In a video, several flight attendants can be seen crowded in the aisle. Attendees could be heard addressing the woman as 'Sarah.' Sarah could be seen holding a baby and screaming, "Where is it?" One of the female flight attendants could be heard in a panicked tone, "Ma'am we are landing." Before abruptly saying, "Sarah, step back. Step back. Sarah step back!" While the woman orders Sarah to step back another flight attendant is seen running to help assist in front of the plane.
The passenger then shoved a flight attendant, sending her to Resurrection Hospital. Another woman and a 3 year were also taken to hospitals for observation. It is unclear what type of injuries the three individuals sustained, but United Airlines stated that there were no serious injuries. United Airlines issued a statement saying that "a disruptive customer on a flight from San Francisco to Chicago was removed by law enforcement upon landing on Sunday." "One member of the flight attendant crew was taken to a hospital for evaluation." The airline also expressed its gratitude to its crew and said, "We're grateful to our crew for handling this difficult situation with professionalism and for putting the safety of our team and our customers first," reported Daily Mail.
The incident and numerous others have now prompted union leaders to press for federal action to increase punishments for offenders. Corliss King, vice president of the Transport Union Workers Local 556, which represents more than 15,000 flight attendants across the country, said incidents are at an all-time high and has called on Congress to pass the Abusive Passengers Act. "That small number of people that are insistent on behaving unruly, on behaving dangerously, represent a threat not just to flight crews but to our flying passengers as well," she told NBC Chicago, reported Daily Mail. "We are looking for the public, federal legislators and we’re looking for our carriers to band together to protect us. We are the most vulnerable." The recent incident on United Flight 476 is being investigated by the Chicago Police Department and the FBI.