Usually it’s passengers acting out of order nowadays, but in this case I’d argue it’s the flight attendant. And I suppose it’s nice to have an onboard mask incident that doesn’t involve a (nose and mouth) face mask, for once?
In this post:
JetBlue passenger berated for being gifted eye mask
A video of a JetBlue passenger being berated by a flight attendant for being gifted an eye mask has been viewed over 1.2 million times on TikTok.
What exactly happened? Tyler Weitzman was traveling on JetBlue from Fort Lauderdale to Los Angeles last week. It was an early morning flight, and he didn’t get much sleep the night before. As he boarded the plane he saw the flight attendant handing out amenity kits to passengers in Mint (which is the name of JetBlue’s swanky business class).
He politely asked the flight attendant if he could have one of the kits, so that he could get an eye mask. She refused and said that they were only for Mint passengers, which was totally fair, especially since they typically only load one for each passenger. He responded by saying he was seated in seat 10C, and that if there were any leftovers, he’d really appreciate an eye mask later on.
A Mint passenger overheard him, because about 10 minutes later she came to his seat and offered him the eye mask in her amenity kit. 10 minutes thereafter the flight attendant came by his seat and told him he needed to give his mask back.
Here’s how the conversation went, which was recorded:
Flight attendant: “Sir, I need to take that mask please.”
Passenger: “Um, sorry?”
Flight attendant: “You didn’t buy a Mint seat, so you can’t use the Mint products.”
Passenger: “Do you have snooze kits available for sale?”
Flight attendant: “Those kits are not available for sale. You can buy them online, but you cannot buy them on the airplane. You can’t even buy them online right now.”
Passenger: “Well I think it’s a little ridiculous.”
Flight attendant: “But I don’t have 143 other masks to give everybody else on the airplane a mask. That’s not fair. Why can you get one but they can’t have one?”
Passenger: “You didn’t give me a mask, though. You did your job.”
Flight attendant: “Yes but you got it from the customer sitting in Mint.”
Passenger: “You gave a customer sitting there a Mint product.”
Flight attendant: “Yes, not for you, for him to use.”
Passenger: “It wasn’t a sir that gave it to me.”
Flight attendant: “What’s to keep people from bringing all of their food and blankets back here to their friends? They can’t do that either.”
It’s claimed that at this point security was called, and that eventually a supervisor boarded, confirming that he was violating the company’s policy. He was told that if he didn’t give back the mask, he’d be kicked off the flight. So he gave back the mask, even though he had already used it.
You can watch the video here for yourself:
What JetBlue says about the incident
A JetBlue representative has confirmed that the flight attendant was simply enforcing the company’s policy, and that Mint passengers are prohibited from sharing products like “meals, alcohol, pillows, blankets, and other amenities,” with passengers in economy. As a spokesperson explains:
“The policy does not specifically mention eye masks that are provided as part of the amenity kit, and after reviewing the customer’s video and speaking to him directly, we understand the frustration he felt. We are sorry we were not able to provide him with an eye mask as requested and that the thoughtful gesture from another customer caused him issues.”
It’s stated that JetBlue is now “revisiting” this policy in order to create “clarity” for customers and staff.
A little common sense goes a long way
This seems like one of those situations where common sense and a general desire to deescalate a situation would have gone a long way. The crew was justified in denying him the amenity kit to begin with (since there are only enough for Mint passengers), though he also can’t be faulted for politely asking, since it can’t hurt to ask.
I also generally understand JetBlue’s policy of not allowing Mint passengers to share service items with economy passengers. But there’s an important distinction between an eye masks and other amenities:
- You can’t share food & drinks with economy passenger, because you (in theory) have unlimited consumption
- You can’t share blankets with economy passengers because those have to stay on the plane, and even Mint passengers can’t keep them
- Eye shades should be a different story since each Mint passenger receives one (and there are no extras), once the kits are open they’re not reused, and therefore it shouldn’t matter who actually uses it
Was the flight attendant just enforcing JetBlue’s policy and technically in the right? Yes. Does the policy make sense a vast majority of the time? Yes. Was any party disadvantaged by a Mint passenger sharing their eye mask with an economy passenger? Absolutely not — the economy passenger got what they wanted, the Mint passenger felt good about doing a good deed, and this didn’t cost JetBlue a cent, since the masks aren’t recycled.
Instead JetBlue ended up with an eye mask in the trash, an unhappy customer, and a TikTok video with over 1.2 million views.
Bottom line
A video is going viral of a JetBlue flight attendant confronting an economy passenger after he had been gifted an eye mask by a business class passenger. The flight attendant demanded the eye mask back, because business class passengers apparently can’t share service items with economy passengers.
While I can appreciate that rule in general, this seems like one of those situations where logic wasn’t applied. Each Mint passenger receives a single eye mask that they can keep, so it should be up to them what they do with it. There are enough problems on planes nowadays, so avoiding unnecessary ones seems prudent.
What do you make of this JetBlue situation? Who was in the right?
miserable people on the ground and why wouldn't there be any in the Sky
In todays world so much problems if this flight attendant is so worried about a mask she truly is the ANGEL of heaven
Id like to know all her faults
I can top that. My young, African American friend on her way to her first business conference, was denied a coffee stirrer.
I have no idea why. First the flight attendant pretended not to know what my friend wanted. My friend described it. The attendant looked at her as if she was an insect.
I'm older and white. I leaned over my friend and said to the attendant, "Just give her a coffee stirrer."...
I can top that. My young, African American friend on her way to her first business conference, was denied a coffee stirrer.
I have no idea why. First the flight attendant pretended not to know what my friend wanted. My friend described it. The attendant looked at her as if she was an insect.
I'm older and white. I leaned over my friend and said to the attendant, "Just give her a coffee stirrer."
Miraculously, the stirrer materialized instantly. My friend and I couldn't believe it.
I think the flight attendant is a joke. This whole situation she created over an EYE MASK was a joke. Let me guess. Her name is Karen?? She was probably having a miserable day so she decided to take it out another person. I hope she was fired and everyone that was backing her up, and essentially ganging up on the poor guy, was fired. He also deserves an apology, not from Jet Blue, but...
I think the flight attendant is a joke. This whole situation she created over an EYE MASK was a joke. Let me guess. Her name is Karen?? She was probably having a miserable day so she decided to take it out another person. I hope she was fired and everyone that was backing her up, and essentially ganging up on the poor guy, was fired. He also deserves an apology, not from Jet Blue, but from the miserable woman herself Karen. It is very unprofessional to be this upset over an eye mask.
Jetblue needs to die out of business. Terrible.
Recently I was asleep on a trip and evidently my mask slipped lower on my nose than they wanted it to be and the flight attendant shook me awake to make me correct my mask situation. Seriously? Can I have food and beverage and leave her mask off for the entire flight as long as you’re still eating or drinking but if someone falls asleep in the masks on their face but falls below some...
Recently I was asleep on a trip and evidently my mask slipped lower on my nose than they wanted it to be and the flight attendant shook me awake to make me correct my mask situation. Seriously? Can I have food and beverage and leave her mask off for the entire flight as long as you’re still eating or drinking but if someone falls asleep in the masks on their face but falls below some point on their nose which I’m not sure of because I was sleeping they have a right to touch you and wake you up from a sound sleep? Ridiculous
I won’t be flying JetBlue.
JetBlue continues to mine the bottom of the barrel with their POS company policies and customer service. I would rather walk than fly JetBlue. I have taken multiple layovers to avoid even a single direct flight on JB because they are an absolutely bottom- feeding terrible company. May the management burn in a chemical fire (figuratively— not literally).
Jet Blue should fire this flight attendant or publicly own the policy she is espousing as their own policy position.
I think the airlines and their employees (whose salaries are paid through our ticket dollars) have forgotten that, in the absence of flight or passenger safety concerns, the customer ALWAYS comes first. If you examine the video you can see that this passenger obviously has a vision disability, he initially asked for reasonable accommodation...
Jet Blue should fire this flight attendant or publicly own the policy she is espousing as their own policy position.
I think the airlines and their employees (whose salaries are paid through our ticket dollars) have forgotten that, in the absence of flight or passenger safety concerns, the customer ALWAYS comes first. If you examine the video you can see that this passenger obviously has a vision disability, he initially asked for reasonable accommodation at the time he was seated and was refused. That more than likely would have been the end of the situation except for the fact that another passenger decided to give this man her eye mask. There are three constitutional violations here: 1). Federal law requires both public and private enterprises to provide "reasonable accommodation" for any disability upon request. 2). The woman who owned the mask had a right under the Freedom of Association Clause to personally accommodate this man's need should she so choose to. 3). The removal of this freely given eye mask (private property) amounts to a regulatory taking and could be prosecuted as a theft as well.
Jet Blue should publicly denounce this shameful episode and discipline the petty, callous actions of their employee.
Never flying JetBlue again. These petty flight attendants make me sick.
Oh dear, JetBlue just made their entire company look like jobsworths (a British phrase meaning someone who overrides common sense to stick to a stupid dictat) good luck with keeping customers after your surly FA with absolutely no empathy sarcastically and I might add condescending barks at a paying customer economy or not. No thank you.
It was theft. 9nce it was given to the passenger it belongs to that passenger to do as they please, likewise, once that passenger gave it to the other passenger, it then became his property, the flight attendant, stole his property, and regardless of value, the flight attendant should be terminated for the theft of a passenger's property
Quite poor optics for JetBlue to be defending this to be honest. What if the business class pax had their own eyemask from home that they handed the person in economy? Would JetBlue also step in to prevent that? Because as long as the eyemask is yours to keep, it is the same.
You can't compare it to food or drinks, because you are not allowed to take those with you.
I once politely asked one of the flight attendants on an LH transat to pour an extra glass of champagne since I had managed to secure a last-minute upgrade to C but my colleague in Y wasn't so lucky. Ok, the flight wasn't even half full but JetBlue would have probably shot me or at least banned me for lifetime. :-)
At the point the kit is given to the customer in mint, it is theirs to do with as they choose, whether that is use it, stash it in their bag for future use or sale on ebay, gift it to someone else, or use it to wipe their butt.
FA firmly in the wrong - what an unnecessary farce.
Uneffing believable. Once a product is given to a passenger, it is wholly in his/her rights to give it to whomever he/she wants. Screw JB! That is the stupidest policy ever. I hope JB gets all the negative press they deserve.
So I guess I can’t bring a Mint mask from a previous flight with me on JetBlue if I’m flying in coach? Insanity
I can see the result of this: we will now need to sign for the amenity kits, pajamas, headsets, etc that note we are the only party that is authorized to use. Then we will need to return at the end of flights.
Ridiculous!
So if I have flown Mint before and bring my eye mask on my next Eco flight, then I am technically not allowed to take it on?
That works exaclty against the argument of the flight attendant. If one gets an eye mask, then everyone in Eco wants one. But if I brought it myself...
Technically, the amenity kits fall outside the scope of “service items”. There’s nothing in JetBlue’s policy that explicitly covers them for good reason…they become the property of that passenger at the moment it touches their hands. Legally speaking, it’s little different than someone in first class making an inflight purchase and then walking that purchase back to a loved one in coach…something done thousands of times a year.
To hear the FA’s version of events...
Technically, the amenity kits fall outside the scope of “service items”. There’s nothing in JetBlue’s policy that explicitly covers them for good reason…they become the property of that passenger at the moment it touches their hands. Legally speaking, it’s little different than someone in first class making an inflight purchase and then walking that purchase back to a loved one in coach…something done thousands of times a year.
To hear the FA’s version of events would have you believe that you couldn’t wear that mask in coach on another flight, no matter if you were the original ‘owner’ or not.
Totally absurd thoughtless approach to customer service. The passenger could have flown Mint the day before and saved the mask to reuse it on a later flight. Would that have freaked the FA out? What makes this incident remarkable is that the passenger was polite and reasonable, but the flight attendant was unnecessarily beligerant and authoritarian. None of this is surprising. Human kindness is absent in daily life these days and airplane cabins are real...
Totally absurd thoughtless approach to customer service. The passenger could have flown Mint the day before and saved the mask to reuse it on a later flight. Would that have freaked the FA out? What makes this incident remarkable is that the passenger was polite and reasonable, but the flight attendant was unnecessarily beligerant and authoritarian. None of this is surprising. Human kindness is absent in daily life these days and airplane cabins are real time social pressure cookers. Don't be surprised if you hear calls for defunding flight attendants. It's coming.
This is an example of how a little bit of power allows people to subvert and control other people, who otherwise are doing nothing wrong and do not deserve to be treated in such a manner. Just imagine if, say, you had the power over tens of millions of dollars in grant money and could disregard the health and safety of the entire world by diverting funds inappropriately to risky bio-weapons research and then enrich...
This is an example of how a little bit of power allows people to subvert and control other people, who otherwise are doing nothing wrong and do not deserve to be treated in such a manner. Just imagine if, say, you had the power over tens of millions of dollars in grant money and could disregard the health and safety of the entire world by diverting funds inappropriately to risky bio-weapons research and then enrich the global pharmacy industry by mandating vaccine inoculation. Just imagine what that world would look like. Oh, you do tomhave to imagine that. You are living it. Liberty=Freedom to do what YOU want as long as it does not infringe on others similar rights.
I am so confused, the amenity kit (everything inside it.) is property of the Mint pax. The pax can do anything they went with it including giving to another person.
What if someone in economy flew in Mint in the past and kept their eye mask, can they use it?
Yes JetBlue change this policy and have a stern word to that flight attendant and tell her to use common sense next time
"A general desire to deescalate a situation"?
For the past 2 decades, more and more Americans seem to pick up a general desire to *escalate* any given situation. We are in the middle of a rage epidemic, which has infected people from all walks of life, across the whole political spectrums, left and right. The pandemic certainly makes it worse, as it gives people another reason to get angry.
Seriously, technically the Mint passenger was the one wrong. Did they say anything to her?
This is very very picky on the FA.
What did she do wrong?
I wonder what would happen if I use a mask in "coach" that I obtained when I flew "mint" on a previous trip....
This is literally crazy. The policy is insane and lacks any common sense in relation to amenity kits for the reasons cited and the FA has no common sense either. This poor passenger was polite and did nothing wrong.
As I read the article I could not believe a flight attendant would behave in this manner. After reading I watched the video; what a B*TCH!!1! I have only traveled Jet Blue twice. The first time I was with a “real” service animal and was treated very poorly. When they announced “people needed extra assistance…” As I approached the gate the agent yelled at me, “you are not disabled.” Everyone in the gate area could...
As I read the article I could not believe a flight attendant would behave in this manner. After reading I watched the video; what a B*TCH!!1! I have only traveled Jet Blue twice. The first time I was with a “real” service animal and was treated very poorly. When they announced “people needed extra assistance…” As I approached the gate the agent yelled at me, “you are not disabled.” Everyone in the gate area could hear. I had also purchased an extra legroom seat. I was forced to fly them again in the fall of 2019, without a service dog and, was again unimpressed with their attitude and service. After reading this article it will be a cold day before i use Jet Blue. And I will make sure this is posted on all my social media links.
You didn't mention why you needed the service animal, though... also, why is "real" in quotation marks?
I think the idea of sharing being banned is completely ridiculous between a Mint passenger and an economy passenger. Once the product is handed to the passenger, it should be up to them to do what will.
By comparison, I flew American a few years ago LGA-DFW, my family member got an upgrade, I did not as the cabin was full. However I was given, by the FA mind you, the sundae that was...
I think the idea of sharing being banned is completely ridiculous between a Mint passenger and an economy passenger. Once the product is handed to the passenger, it should be up to them to do what will.
By comparison, I flew American a few years ago LGA-DFW, my family member got an upgrade, I did not as the cabin was full. However I was given, by the FA mind you, the sundae that was meant for first class during the meal service.
Similarly flying Delta One on AMS-EWR a Delta One FA saw I was flying with people who were in Y and gave me extra arrival chocolates as a nice gesture.
These are small touches and should be encouraged, not discouraged. If someone is abusing this like with cocktail after cocktail, then obviously, but a cut and dry policy is ridiculous at best and downright stupid at worst. We aren't talking about someone taking an entire business class meal back to a Y passenger then asking for another one, its a facemask.
I am an American but gosh can U.S. airline personnel be nastier! The attitude is incredulous! Foreign flag carrier for me or I simply don't go and stay home!
Does that mean that I cannot reuse the Mint eyemask provided on a previous flight unless I fly mint again? Or does that mean I cannot give my niece the amenity kit after? Hope she does not get arrested on JetBlue the next time she flies....
And this is why I don't feel comfortable when cabin crew are given wide powers in some suggested policy (like banning passengers) without a pathway for arbitration or recourse for the passenger, where cabin crew words weighs more than yours. By her response and tone, you can clear see she immediately loses patience with the passenger, even though he was patiently and calmly protesting for something so minor.
You just described the police.
After Spirit people entered their board, Jetblue has gone to shit. Sad to see such a great airline be run into the ground.
Pandemic or no, this disaster is caused by jetBlue's wholesale forgetting of its roots. Check out this archived official blog post from more than 10 years ago. Yes, the title is, "Bringing the humanity back to air travel".
http://blog.jetblue.com/bringing-the-humanity-back-to-air-travel/
They are robots. It’s not only that they don’t have common sense, they also don’t have compassion. The passenger already told them that he did not get any sleep the night before, and on top of that he does appear to have a problem with his left eye and really needed the eye shade to rest his eyes. No compassion at all. I say Jet Blue screw you.
I already said I would never fly JetBlue again after my own horrible JFK-MIA flight last April and this just reinforces my decision. The few dollars you save is not worth the aggravation.
Was the FA's name Karen by chance?
Great another enhanced policy review and they will list the contents of the amenity kit and everything else that is transferable from Mint, what a crazy lack of common sense jobs worth world it’s becoming.
Common sense is becoming less common because we are collectively asking for every little rule and norm to be enumerated and documented as a policy or law... so in the end, we lose sight of the end goal or how to solve problems outside a rule book.... becoming rule followers and enforcers. :/
JetBlue was wrong because they ceased ownership of the mask when the Mint passenger took it.
Many passengers are troublemakers but this guy in row 10 was not.
Exactly what I was thinking. Once that amenity kit was handed to the Mint passenger it was no longer JetBlue's property and became the Mint passenger's property to do as they please with.
The only clarification JB should be making is that they were wrong.
IMHO, JetBlue wasn't wrong. Just ignorant and inappropriate. (until they add some ownership rule)
But you have to look from JetBlue's perspective too.
If a MINT passenger is done with his/her food and left it on an empty seat, can you just walk up from row 10 and take the food? JetBlue and the MINT passenger probably ceased ownership of the food.
Better yet, can you go dumpster diving in the MINT galley, I'm...
IMHO, JetBlue wasn't wrong. Just ignorant and inappropriate. (until they add some ownership rule)
But you have to look from JetBlue's perspective too.
If a MINT passenger is done with his/her food and left it on an empty seat, can you just walk up from row 10 and take the food? JetBlue and the MINT passenger probably ceased ownership of the food.
Better yet, can you go dumpster diving in the MINT galley, I'm sure everyone ceased ownership for items in the trash bin.
I don't condone such reaction from the crew but I can't say JetBlue was wrong about their enforcement.
Many flight crew makes up bogus FAA rules but this FA did not. (confirmed by supervisor and spokesperson)
What if I kept the mask from a previous flight on Mint and decided to use it on economy in any future flight?
FAs have too much power. There needs to be a way for passengers to keep FAs in check.
Finally somebody who understands the underlying problem. And it's not just FA, but the whole flight crew.
This is about proper use of their post 9/11 super powers, and I don't disagree of having this much power, they should when needed.
What needs to be more clear is the limits of the power for the situation. What should cause a diversion, when to involve security or law enforcements, etc.
Again, would the pilot...
Finally somebody who understands the underlying problem. And it's not just FA, but the whole flight crew.
This is about proper use of their post 9/11 super powers, and I don't disagree of having this much power, they should when needed.
What needs to be more clear is the limits of the power for the situation. What should cause a diversion, when to involve security or law enforcements, etc.
Again, would the pilot divert if the word 'bomb' is coming from a 5 year old or maybe 15? (serious question, if any airline pilot can chime in)
This is not about right or wrong it’s about crew mentality of power tripping which is horrible in the US in any other country common sense discussion can be had on aircraft, in the US “ we are primarily here for your safety “ which means I get to exert control as long as you are on my aircraft no matter if I’m reasonable or not
i wonder, what JetBlue would say if i re-used my eye mask from a previouse flight that i took in MINT?
Would i also be enforced to take it off and they put it in the trash.
I guess the airline forgot that they gifted that mask to the MINT passenger and did not lend it to that lady, so at the end she could do with it what she wants.
If that would go to court, that would be an interesting outcome i bet!
In this case, TikTok evidence suggested that the person did not deny receiving it on this flight. Statement shows there is witness to handing the eye masks over.
In your case, I doubt JetBlue would even try to do anything with you.
But I would caution you about the term 'gifting'. Currently there seems to be no clear written rule about this and could be considered a 'gift'. But don't forget JetBlue can write...
In this case, TikTok evidence suggested that the person did not deny receiving it on this flight. Statement shows there is witness to handing the eye masks over.
In your case, I doubt JetBlue would even try to do anything with you.
But I would caution you about the term 'gifting'. Currently there seems to be no clear written rule about this and could be considered a 'gift'. But don't forget JetBlue can write the rule any time about the ownership of the amenity kit. And if I'm JetBlue I'm going to introduce the "eye mask rule" into the COC soon. Then they can choose to press charges or not for theft of service.
How ever if they do try to enforce bogus rules on you, as long as you disobey the flight crew's instruction, I bet the judge (and the law) will side with JetBlue.
Agreed.
Legally speaking, I'm fairly sure ownership (dominion and control) of the amenity kit and its contents passed to the passengers when he/she opened it. From that point the passenger was free to use or dispose of the kit as if it were any other piece of their property--including gifting it to another passenger. So technically it wasn't "sharing" the item since the Mint passenger had no expectation of the eye-mask being returned; rather it...
Agreed.
Legally speaking, I'm fairly sure ownership (dominion and control) of the amenity kit and its contents passed to the passengers when he/she opened it. From that point the passenger was free to use or dispose of the kit as if it were any other piece of their property--including gifting it to another passenger. So technically it wasn't "sharing" the item since the Mint passenger had no expectation of the eye-mask being returned; rather it was given with "dispassionate generosity"
All of this of course assumes the FA cared about enforcing the real law (rather than their layman's interpretation of it) or indeed even basic common sense and societal manners.
JetBlue is just being dumb. There is a clear difference between the items that must be given back to the airline (one hopes for cleaning), and items that I get to keep. What if I fly Mint, keep the eye mask, and then use it on a future flight when I'm not in Mint? Did I break the rules by sharing the pen AA gave me? And goodness, that time I wore my CX PJs while flying in business on AA! I might have been arrested.
"Karen" was 100% looking for trouble where there was none. The amenity kit belongs to person who bought the Mint ticket. What that passenger does with the products from that kit is up to them, not Karen.
Just like when I called out JetBlue flight crew for diverting the flight because a junkie has feathers as a perceived weapon, the crew is overreacting.
While a Southwest flight attendant lost 2 teeth but the flight continued with no diversion.
I guess this could be a culture at JetBlue. I have to take my word back what I said on the diversion that "This is a new low for authoritarian flight crews exercising...
Just like when I called out JetBlue flight crew for diverting the flight because a junkie has feathers as a perceived weapon, the crew is overreacting.
While a Southwest flight attendant lost 2 teeth but the flight continued with no diversion.
I guess this could be a culture at JetBlue. I have to take my word back what I said on the diversion that "This is a new low for authoritarian flight crews exercising their post 9/11 super powers".
Enforcing this sharing policy is the new low.
Same as the diversion incident, I'm not saying there is no grounds for this, there definitely is. The rule is confirmed 3 times by 1. the crew 2. the supervisor and 3. the spokesperson.
Unlike that case, most people seems to disagree with the flight crew on handling this incident. But fact is same, flight crew has super powers and are trigger happy to use it. If they call security over eye masks, they will call security over anything.
Now some credit is due, which is not mentioned here (but in Yahoo), the flight attendant later brought a non branded mask for him.
Moving forward, this incident would probably make things worse and not better. Airlines will make rules that will protect their interest because they can. This might be a start of including an "eye mask rule" into the COC.
The rule will be something along the line that every amenities, etc., are property of airline. The passengers only have the rights to use it, just like we can't buy software anymore just the license to use them.
Thank you for letting us know that the FA finally provided the passenger a mask. That denouement (somewhat) changes my appraisal of the situation (which *still* wouldn't have arisen if she'd done the right thing and avoided the confrontation altogether).
From what I've read, it wasn't the FA providing the eye mask. It was another passenger providing a non-Mint eye mask.
Just a matter of time before these flight attendants starting getting seriously hurt or worse for some of their silly decision making skills.
.. and these are the people that are supposed to be making life or death decisions for the entire aircraft in emergency situations!
Exactly. Do you trust this FA to even serve you coffee without scalding you, let alone having the intellectual and emotional capacity to lead during an emergency? She can’t articulate how an eye mask which is taken off the plane when you disembark is in anyway an item that cannot be freely shared. What if he had an eyemask from first class on a previous trip. Can he not wear it becyase he’s not in...
Exactly. Do you trust this FA to even serve you coffee without scalding you, let alone having the intellectual and emotional capacity to lead during an emergency? She can’t articulate how an eye mask which is taken off the plane when you disembark is in anyway an item that cannot be freely shared. What if he had an eyemask from first class on a previous trip. Can he not wear it becyase he’s not in the first class cabin? This woman is ridiculously stupid and should be fired.
Clearly a flight attendant in search of a battle. Not sure I've seen AA or UA stoop this low in my travels. Well, I'm sticking with AA on my transcons out of MIA.
I feel ridiculous saying this, as the bar has gotten way too low, but I would say that both the passenger and the flight attendant disagreed with each other without losing their cool. I think that's at least a positive as we've seen many small disagreements escalate into shouting matches and violence.
Well except for threatening to kick him off the plane. Which would be accomplished by armed thugs I guess that was pretty sweet of her.
Definitely a training issue. This is something that needs to be up to the discretion of the lead FA. That FA will make the final call understanding that if they make a perceived negative decision it will be on social media. That’s fine if the stance and the conversation holdup positively to the airline. This was not passing back snacks or free booze. It was a throw away eye mask.
A robot could have done the FA's job. I wish the FA had common sense.
I object to the use of the term "de-escalate" in this situation. There was no situation, the FA created a problem out of thin air. People like that shouldn't deal with customers. They deserve the bad publicity.
Jetblue used to give eye mask when I took JFK to SFO.
Maybe cost cutting
I think they do that on redeyes only
What a joke. Goodness me, it was a fine gesture from a passenger. Common sense, indeed.
The service on the US gets worse and worse. The FA is completely ridiculous. A jobs worth. A face mask !!? Another customer gave it him, and he was being polite, yet she wanted to delay the flight and disrupt everyone.
Guidelines are just that it-- guides. They are not scripts. They do not necessarily override common sense.
I agree with the above- it would be different if it were food or drinks.
Kind of ironic that the one time an eye mask from an amenity kit is actually used by a passenger he is not allowed to do so.
I agree, this lacks complete common sense and was needlessly escalated.
However I think it's part of a bigger issues - FA's not being empowered to make things right. As the JetBlue team confirmed, the FA was following the policy as outlined. I'm sure FA's are always under a microscope given the current climate so even though I think it's absurd, I can't solely blame the FA.
I hope B6 does try to do something...
I agree, this lacks complete common sense and was needlessly escalated.
However I think it's part of a bigger issues - FA's not being empowered to make things right. As the JetBlue team confirmed, the FA was following the policy as outlined. I'm sure FA's are always under a microscope given the current climate so even though I think it's absurd, I can't solely blame the FA.
I hope B6 does try to do something to make this right for the passenger, it's not a good look.
Sure, they probably are under a microscope. She could have just "not seen" the interaction between the Mint and Economy passenger though. Nothing gained, nothing lost. I think this is one of those situations where she could have turned a blind eye. It's not expected they'll see everything on board, so plausible deniability is there.
They also said that eye masks weren’t mentioned in the policy, so this FA used her discretion which is of questionable intelligence. Perhaps she shouldn’t be operating as a FA at all.