Several readers have brought this incident to my attention, as it seems to be getting a lot of attention in Brazil. I don’t really know what to say, other than ”oy vey.”
Continue reading: Oh My: Frustrated American Airlines Passenger Tackled By Flight Attendant
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
Woman forgot that it's a god given right in America and at American companies that a white man is allowed to use whatever force they feel appropriate on a woman.
As with most videos missing the key part…what lead up to the incident. Wondering if she tried to force her way into the flight deck or pushed someone right before the video started. IDK either way classic FAFO.
Brazilians can sometimes be extremely challenging and drama queens, often causing scenes with yelling and aggressive behavior. She may have deserved it, but it's worth noting that Brazilians are even more litigious than Americans. I experienced a weather delay due to a severe storm while in Sao Paulo, and passengers were loudly demanding information about the situation and their rights. She was probably a supporter of Bolsonaro.
I think most of us agree that Airlines and most of its employees lead the way on poor communication skills.
First and foremost was she a true physical threat to the pilots? Second, the police should have been called immediately, she removed from the plane and trespassed from the airport. Taken to jail if she gave the cops any guff. These people need to be put on a total Do Not Fly List. Next time she can take a really slow boat to South America.
This is the typical kind of incident which only ever happens on an American airline or alternatively on Ryanair flights from the UK to Spain.
Other parts of the world and other airlines don’t seem to see these kind of incidents.
The adventurous lady should have been ordered to her seat and could then have been taken off the flight for not complying with crew instructions (if she wasn’t complying with crew instructions)
Taking her down to the floor for approaching the open cockpit door on the ground is a bad joke.
It is funny this Brazilian woman is upset the flight is delayed. Nothing ever leaves, departs, arrives, starts, or ends on time in Brazil. Get invited for a dinner party at 7 pm and arrive at 7 pm to see what happens. The host will send you back home. And I am Brazilian.
After being tackled to the ground, the lady seems quite unfazed and uninjured, walking unassisted and calmly saying: "I just wanted to know why the flight is delayed." Seems she is used to this kind of confrontation.
Don’t give me the “couldn’t this situation have been de escalated” bologna. Universal language in any country is approach the flight deck door, get tackled.
Doesn’t matter; you don’t know what her intentions are, bad guys have used children and people in wheelchairs to attempt to carry out acts on airplanes, or used as a diversion. Approach the flight deck, get decked.
I see two factors at play in this incident. (1) Brazilians in general bear an anti-American sentiment from decades of leftist indoctrination in ours school system and from our biased media. This flight being operated by an American carrier, it might have played a role in this outburst. (2) You may see her behavior, and of other Brazilians in general, as challenging and drama queen like, but what is underneath is a sense of entitlement and lack of respect for authority that runs deep in the Brazilian culture. Civility, patience, politeness, and respect for others: these have never been valued in the Brazilian culture. We are more into immediate gratification and looking after our individual needs.
She did tried to force her way into the flight deck - it's in the beginning of the video, as the pilot tried to close the door. That's when the tackling occurred.
One doesn't just walk up to the flight deck and demand anything...even on the ground. I have cockpit access at my company but I always show my ID to the flight attendant prior to just walking in. Several prior comments make total sense. Most flight attendants are not trained in the "art" of de-escalating potential issues. Another said that no one knows the passenger's intentions. Correct! People have used children or other persons incapable of defending themselves to gain access to a variety of "ask before you barge in" places. If this passenger was becoming overly aggressive, slamming her to the floor was justified. Toss her butt off the jet.
Completely asinine remark. YOU are not only stupid but a definite racist in the strictest definition.
It was looks like this was a single aisle aircraft. Not a 787 or 777. Maybe the whole thing was staged.
You don’t wait to see if someone is a threat. Maybe only tackle someone after the first plane is flown into a building?
Even though the plane was on the ground, she could have had a firearm or other weapon and attempted to hijack the plane.
The flight attendant's move reminded me of getting a deep dip from Samba. I must say it looked very gentle, considering the circumstance. Manners and de-escalation are a two way street. Be rude and get dipped.
Oh, by the way... when she says, "Do you know who you're talking to?" the reply should be "No, but if you will hum a few bars, I'll try to sing along."
I'm also curious what the large loudmouth in row 1 is screaming about. Sounds like he's screeching "Don't do this!" but my Brazilian Portuguese is rusty. And is he screeching at the lady or the FAs. Either way not at all helping the situation. I hope he was removed, too.
I think that most of us understand that the plot of "communication skills" likely has a fairly normal distribution for all humans, including those who choose to work in air travel.
Yeah. Flights would be much easier to operate, if all passengers were removed before departure.
Ge real AC Guest - she got off lightly on American. On United they might have El Kabonged her with a guitar and dragged her down the aisle. Had she been flying Hertz Airways, she surely would have been arrested for stealing the plane.
Any unauthorised attempt to gain access to the flight deck is a security risk.
Any potential security risk should be taken very seriously indeed.
Any woman engaged in a security risk scenario should be considered to be more dangerous than a man and dealt with appropriately.
First IA in an anti terrorist action should always be taken against the woman FIRST!
It would appear that the FA(?) who tackled the woman to the ground acted appropriately in that situation.
He should be congratulated not castigated.
Who's the bloke in seat 1J who's already down to his underpants before the plane even starts to push back???
Wow, she takes an aggressive action to push into the cockpit. Deescalation was not the route. The FAs were right.
Her actions definitely seemed erratic. Who flies business class and then goes to the rear galley to complain about a 30-minute delay while the plane is actively taxiing for takeoff? Especially since the delay was apparently due to a necessary runway change because of weather.
It's quite possible she was under the influence of sleep or relaxation medication, which can sometimes cause agitation. Like Ben mentioned, the physical response – punching and throwing her down – seemed excessive, particularly as she didn't appear physically strong enough to pose a real threat.
I also felt for the guy in 1D. He wasn't involved with her but was clearly stressed, yelling at the flight attendant (Caio) potentially about excessive force, and telling the woman to be quiet. His tone was wrong, absolutely, but staying in his seat and not touching anyone suggests he wasn't a menace, likely just trying (badly) to de-escalate.
Dinner party at 7 pm, in Brazil? Are you crazy? Maybe in a Senior Home.
The “do you know who you’re talking to” part is very brazilian.
But as for flights, they are always very punctual in Brazil, perhaps better than the US.
AA FAs often see passengers as a "necessary annoyance" and rarely put in professional effort on their job, but in this case, they were spot on in neutralizing the aggressive, entitled lady. By the way, rather than saying "oy vey," which is Spanish Mia-Cuban, you should say "Que barraco", in good Brazilian Portuguese 🙂
I used that line recently lol. A client said “ do you know who I am”? He was being a complete c.. so my response was “ I don’t, however if you can sing the first few bars I’ll do my best to join in “ lol
Sadly it’s a global issue. Just because you don’t see it online doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen. I’m aware of several incidents involving flights to Asian countries including South Korea and Japan.
Homophobic language, the “you don’t know who you’re talking to” part, traveling in business class…
100% sure that Karen is an empowered “Bolsonarista”, the equivalent to a MAGA in the US. Unbearable People!
Lucky that pilot wasn't armed. He would have been within his rights to put a bullet in her skull. After 9/11 F/A 's and pilots are trained to protect the flight deck at all costs. So if she tried to barge her way into the flight deck, they were well within their rights to take her down.
A few of the folks on this comment thread get it. If you've spent any time at all around Brazilians, you get it.
Some of the warmest people you'll ever meet, but my God, the entitlement mentality there is unlike any other culture on Earth. In the Brazilian psyche, rules are for everyone else - once you decide you want something, you deserve it, and anyone who suggests otherwise doesn't understand your place in the world.
Frankly, I'm surprised we don't get videos like this every day on AA flights from Brazil.
Bruh, they were on the ground. There's nothing she could have done to take control of the aircraft or cause a crash in the face of multiple flight attendants and the pilots. There's ZERO need for lethal force in those circumstances.
Clearly there are some people who are unaware of danger that a woman can pose in the event that she has terrorist intent.
Clearly there are some people who are unaware of the meaning “Lethal Force”.
Clearly there are some people who did not understand that as the woman walked away from the cockpit doorway, then she could not have suffered “Lethal Force”, yes?
@AeroB13a
Perhaps read the thread and make sure you understand the context before commenting. I said there was zero need for lethal force under the circumstances in response to @Retired FA's claim that had the pilot been armed he would have been within grounds to shoot her. I'm rejecting that, as the situation did not call for lethal force, IE USE OF A GUN. What I'm NOT commenting on is the takedown by the flight attendant in the video.
If you'd like to continue to participate, please explain how a single unarmed old lady approaching the flight deck is a threat to the safety of the aircraft or passengers while on the ground.
I agree with the point about cabin crews needing well-developed de-escalation skills. That said, the obnoxious old biatch shooting her mouth off was looking for a whack in the labonza, and got off easily with a crash-tackle and being removed from the flight.
Any person (whether young or old), especially one who is angry, who attempts to forcibly enter the cockpit must be considered as and treated as a threat. You state that she was unarmed, but you can't be 100% sure about that in the heat of the moment.
retired Pan Am f/a..... doesn't matter that they were on the ground. There are certain behaviors that almost never can be verbally de-escalated and there is a HUGE amount of harm that can happen to crew, pax, and aircraft by a person like this.
Think about how long it takes to taxi from a runway to the terminal...that is an eternity when you have a batshit angry combative individual on board
That woman was an AH but the actions of the flight attendant are close to criminal. I wonder whether he was detained by brazilian police for assault. He should be prosecuted as there was no credible risk to the crew or flight attendant this point. For sure that flight attendant is never flying back to Brazil. And for those wondering, yes brazilian law applies on the ground and is not as happy with quick agression as american law.
Why is the cockpit door open with NO Flight Attendant in front to prevent anyone from entering?
AA has a management problem when leaving cockpit door open where should flight attendants be stationed.
AA has a management problem when leaving cockpit door open where should flight attendants be stationed.
Okay, bad behavior on all sides.... but I totally hate delays where there is no respect and courtesy by the captain and/or lead FA to inform the passengers about the delay....
If the main door was closed and she went towards the open door of the flight deck, SHE IS A RISK!
There are protocols for when the flight deck door is open for whatever reason.
These Brazilians think they are God's gift to the world and can do anything they want because they have money!
This lady was a SECURITY RISK! Anybody rushing the cockpit or flight deck door and trying to make unwanted physical contact with a pilot or crew member should be dealt with appropriately.
FA did their job properly and should receive a commendation for his actions!
If Brazilians don't like American Airlines, maybe they should get their own country's airlines to fly to MIA, MCO, JFK, etc. Or maybe they should fly Brazilian carriers where they can act like this with no consequences.
You're viewing it from one aisle. you can't see the other aisle in the video. duh...
Who cares. In the heat of the moment, you don't know what her intentions are and what she is capable of. Woman or not. if she is screaming and irate in a foreign language, approaches the cockpit door, what do you think, she is asking for a glass of wine?!
I bet you would be one to ask if the 9/11 hijackers were truly a threat to the people on board when they said they were returning to the airport right?
Obviously you are a delusional American - ONLY Americans would consider tackling an elderly woman ok and a terrorist threat. Grow up FFS
@Cam I wish my fellow citizens better, but so many of them automatically assume the worst possible circumstances whenever somebody gets combative or belligerent, and use that assumption as justification that shooting somebody isn't just allowed but necessary. It's a mass paranoia.
Pretty sure it's sufficient to block the person's way, not to assault them. Even if they're rude and 'deserve it'.