United Airlines flyer says cabin crew 'laughed and made jokes' after she complained about seatmate fondling himself
A disgruntled United Airlines passenger says that flight attendants "started making jokes" after she informed them of her male seatmate who was masturbating beside her during a flight in June. The woman, who later switched seats, said that the disgraced man was even 'allowed to finish.'
The woman, who hails from Chicago, declared that United Airlines' "lack of action is disgusting," considering they took six weeks to respond to her complaint. She said that she was able to share her story owing to the aforementioned delay in response.
She took to Instagram last week and posted about the incident in complete detail. According to BuzzFeed News, on June 4, the 26-year-old photographer was shocked to awake from a nap and find her unnamed seatmate “touching himself under a blanket” as they flew from London’s Heathrow Airport to Chicago.
“I woke the woman next to me and got out of there to tell a flight attendant the attendants checked and confirmed that he was masturbating in public. Once I got up the woman next to me saw, and she also got up. They gave us new seats,” she wrote in the post caption.
While they were given new seats, she says the staff then began snickering and joking, evidently implying that he was masturbating because of her.
“They then started making jokes about the situation, asking, ‘What perfume are you wearing?’ and excusing him saying, ‘He’s had a bit of wine’ [and] no one stopped him.”
The 26-year-old dramatically added that the man “was allowed to finish, with a child sitting closely by."
Once the flight landed, she immediately reached out to a “security guard” who suggested an apology from the offender. However, she rejected the offer.
The woman says it took the airline “a month-and-a-half” to respond to her complaint via email. In the response, the company issued an apology for the “uncomfortable situation” she experienced midflight and left it at that.
Shw shared a photo on Instagram carrying the response from the United representative, who declined any kind of goodwill compensation or refund for her experience.
"Unfortunately, we are unable to honor your request for a refund from London to Chicago or offer goodwill compensation," the representative wrote.
“I am appalled at the lack of action taken in this situation in which as a woman, I was terrified. This man is clearly capable of much more,” the woman wrote. “(See email) your lack of action is disgusting.”
In a conversation with BuzzFeed on July 19, she revealed that she received half of her ticket price compensated in the form of a voucher. She is, however, still shaken by the incident.
“They were excusing his disgusting behavior and making jokes. I understand you can’t control the situation, but you can control how you handle it,” she said.
BuzzFeed News requested United Airlines for additional comment on the story, to which company spokeswoman responded with the following statement:
“Inappropriate and offensive conduct like this on our aircraft is exceedingly rare, but we have a protocol to ensure our customers’ safety because it is our top priority,” a spokesperson for the airline said.
“That’s why, in this case, our customers were promptly moved to different seats in a different section of the plane and law enforcement officials were summoned in advance to meet the perpetrator when the plane pulled into the gate.
“Our team also called the woman the same day her flight landed in Chicago for a wellness check,” the spokesperson said.
Earlier this month, a drunken passenger allegedly molested a Colorado woman after telling flight attendants he was "horny". The woman then sued the company for failing to protect her from his assault.
The woman was shocked when she woke up to find man rubbing her crotch and masturbating under a 'rug' during the flight from Hong Kong to San Francisco. She immediately fled from her business class seat.
According to papers filed as part of a civil suit in Colorado District Court, she was told to resolve the incident by returning to her seat and "talking" to her attacker when she reported the 47-year-old to a flight attendant.
Although she was moved to another seat eventually, she said the man continued to "torment" her as she got off the aircraft.
At the time, she said she was diagnosed with PTSD after the attack, which reportedly caused her "severe emotional distress." She sought at least $75,000 in damages from both United and the passenger.
On December 5, 2016, a criminal assault complaint was filed against the tainted pilot at the District Court for the Northern District of California. However, he was acquitted of all charges on June 7 the following year.
A spokeswoman for United told Daily Mail at the time: "We can't comment on this case because of pending litigation, but safety is our top priority and we're always looking for more we can do to ensure the safety and security of the hundreds of thousands of people who fly United every day."