Author Topic: Thrown off flight for taking pix!?! (Read 6683 times)

moish · « **Reply #20 on:** February 19, 2013, 04:13:28 PM »

Quote from: springles on February 19, 2013, 02:28:49 PM

a frequent traveler like him should know that you never invoke the word terrorist when talking to a FA. I am not at all saying that the response was warranted but thats just dumb.

i completely agree. i was shocked when i read it

DG · « **Reply #21 on:** February 20, 2013, 11:00:34 AM »

The craziest part of this story is how so many of the people who were on the flight have commented on the blog article - definitely helps his case/story because he has some many people corroborating...

sky121 · « **Reply #22 on:** February 20, 2013, 11:06:35 AM »

At the end of the day if a pilot or flight attendants don't feel safe they should have the authority to request a passenger be taken off.

The flight attendant lying is totally separate issue.

And no matter what United should compensate him, even if the crew does have the authority to have him removed.

DG · « **Reply #23 on:** February 20, 2013, 11:42:55 AM »

I believe that this was alluded to in the blog comments - but the "better safe than sorry" argument trumps all. Flight attendants were told after 9/11 that if they feel even the slightest intimidation, they have the complete autonomy to make the decision to have someone booted. If I remember correctly, the airlines have made it clear that they will not second-guess those decisions.

Granted - some will have bad judgment and poor decisions will be made. However, the airlines have surmised that it is in the interest of everyone on board to be overly cautious when dealing with even a remote possibility of a problem - probably the right decision.

The FA lying is a somewhat irrelevant aspect of the story - sure, she lied. However, she could have told the pilot that she wants him removed because she didn't like the way he was looking at her. The protocol is there - she fluffed it up for credibility. If she gets called out she can always say she thought he was taking additional pictures and she was wrong but still did not like his attitude. Also, there is no way to know if he actually took any additional pictures - its his word against hers.

United will compensate him because of the huge negative PR this is having but also because it doesn't seem against policy to take pictures. Anyone who has ever flown in C/F has experienced people taking pictures - it always happens.

yehuda S · « **Reply #24 on:** February 20, 2013, 11:44:37 AM »

Lol: (From the comments.)

Carol February 20, 2013 at 05:50 am
The "no picture" policy is there for safety concerns at which I am not at liberty to really get into & all or most airlines have the same policy. As a United employee, & a flt attendant, I am sorry this happened to you. I will not disparage my fellow coworkers as I was not a witness to this incident but I would like to say that mergers are stressfull & very confusing not just for the customers but also for the employees. We are currently merging 2 huge operations with completely different procedures & cultures. Things are changing rapidly within the company. While this policy is not new, to those of us who are employed in this industry, the changes we re encountering DAILY in our jobs are new & in some cases life altering. I make no excuses for her & how she treated you. I just ask for your understanding that she may have known of this policy but not understood it or how to inform you in a more appropriate manner.

#126
Jackie C. February 20, 2013 at 06:24 am
@Carol - are we talking about the same airline which is inviting passengers to share their "United experience" with photos on instagram? http://instagram.com/united

YankyDoodle · « **Reply #25 on:** February 20, 2013, 11:59:23 AM »

Probably should have shown the GS rep his phone to prove that he did indeed cease taking pictures. Much more difficult to prove her lie now.

springles · « **Reply #26 on:** February 20, 2013, 12:02:11 PM »

Quote from: yehuda S on February 20, 2013, 11:44:37 AM

Lol: (From the comments.)

Carol February 20, 2013 at 05:50 am
The "no picture" policy is there for safety concerns at which I am not at liberty to really get into & all or most airlines have the same policy. As a United employee, & a flt attendant, I am sorry this happened to you. I will not disparage my fellow coworkers as I was not a witness to this incident but I would like to say that mergers are stressfull & very confusing not just for the customers but also for the employees. We are currently merging 2 huge operations with completely different procedures & cultures. Things are changing rapidly within the company. While this policy is not new, to those of us who are employed in this industry, the changes we re encountering DAILY in our jobs are new & in some cases life altering. I make no excuses for her & how she treated you. I just ask for your understanding that she may have known of this policy but not understood it or how to inform you in a more appropriate manner.

#126
Jackie C. February 20, 2013 at 06:24 am
@Carol - are we talking about the same airline which is inviting passengers to share their "United experience" with photos on instagram? http://instagram.com/united

Yeah, I thought that was particularly funny

sky121 · « **Reply #27 on:** February 20, 2013, 12:23:57 PM »

Quote from: springles on February 20, 2013, 12:02:11 PM

Yeah, I thought that was particularly funny

Lol- didn't see that. That is funny.

chff · « **Reply #28 on:** February 20, 2013, 12:49:47 PM »

On my trip to Israel in Dec, I flew 5 flights on 4 airlines.
SQ as I was allowed in the cockpit for a brief moment the captain didn't allow me to take any pics.
LH/OS allowed me.

US TLV-PHL I entered the cockpit (without asking a FA), the crew were very nice, took pictures, spoke about the plane systems/control (as I had piloted once an aircraft), the captain did the pre-startup checklist with me etc.
The part gets funny as I was in 1H, and couldn't fall asleep as the light in the front was turned on. I asked the FA to turn it off, she said that the flight is "a high security", the captain wants it on during the flight. I asked her why is it on high security, is it because (it was X-mas night) on this night was the "underwear bomb"? She said no, this captain is always on high-security....
So even the captain is on high-s, he still allowed me in, sat there 20min, took pictures.....

Thingywingy · « **Reply #29 on:** March 06, 2013, 08:00:21 PM »

http://philadelphia.cbslocal.com/2013/03/06/3-on-your-side-thrown-off-united-flight-for-taking-photos/

http://upgrd.com/matthew/thrown-off-a-united-airlines-flight-for-taking-pictures.html

Mimi K. · « **Reply #30 on:** March 06, 2013, 08:20:48 PM »

crazy story but not so surprising. I dealt with my fair share of abusive Flight crews. I had a SwissAir Stewardess grab the pressure points in my neck to force my phone out of my hand. I was texting long before we taxied.

Some of them take their rules too seriously!

chff · « **Reply #31 on:** March 06, 2013, 08:25:50 PM »

Very crazy story, the crazy part that the word search ain't on your dictionary..... And its the news is quite old....

chff · « **Reply #32 on:** March 06, 2013, 08:28:52 PM »

http://forums.dansdeals.com/index.php?topic=25580.0
Thrown off flight for taking pix!?!

Mimi K. · « **Reply #33 on:** March 06, 2013, 08:39:48 PM »

Quote from: springles on February 19, 2013, 02:28:49 PM

a frequent traveler like him should know that you never invoke the word terrorist when talking to a FA. I am not at all saying that the response was warranted but thats just dumb.

+1 That word should not be in your vocabulary.
It will get you in trouble every time.
My brother was in Arizona for a Stopover and they asked him if he has explosives and he said "Just a grenade"
They locked down the whole area and told every single person inconvenienced that "someone made a bomb joke"
The crowd was ready to kill him.
Trust me he will never say it again. (at least not outside of Israel

)

ChaimBer · « **Reply #34 on:** March 06, 2013, 11:44:58 PM »

crazy story!

Mordy788 · « **Reply #35 on:** March 06, 2013, 11:46:19 PM »

Quote from: Mimi K. on March 06, 2013, 08:20:48 PM

crazy story but not so surprising. I dealt with my fair share of abusive Flight crews. I had a SwissAir Stewardess grab the pressure points in my neck to force my phone out of my hand. I was texting long before we taxied.
Some of them take their rules too seriously!

You were phsically assaulted in order to turn off your electronic device??

smart brit · « **Reply #36 on:** March 07, 2013, 02:03:49 AM »

Quote from: Mordy788 on March 06, 2013, 11:46:19 PM

You were phsically assaulted in order to turn off your electronic device??

should sue the airline or file charges

Mimi K. · « **Reply #37 on:** March 07, 2013, 03:02:46 AM »

Quote from: Mordy788 on March 06, 2013, 11:46:19 PM

You were phsically assaulted in order to turn off your electronic device??

not assaulted but pinched in the neck. She was a tall Blonde German with a pretty smile and she knew how to do it.
She must've been trained. It definitely worked and She smiled and said "Schprachst di nisht Deutsche?!?" as if she was stroking my neck. The person next to me just thought I dropped my cell and picked it up and handed it to me. I was more shocked than anything else. I was just texting my Father that we were taking off 2 hours late.

Quote from: smart brit on March 07, 2013, 02:03:49 AM

should sue the airline or file charges

it was 7 or 8 years ago. I was just a dumb teenager. its probably past the statue of limitations & they probably have discretion and it was in Zurich.

yare · « **Reply #38 on:** March 07, 2013, 07:01:17 AM »

hit drudge... uniteds gonna regret it

Mordy788 · « **Reply #39 on:** March 07, 2013, 07:03:26 AM »

Quote from: Mimi K. on March 07, 2013, 03:02:46 AM

not assaulted but pinched in the neck. She was a tall Blonde German with a pretty smile and she knew how to do it.
She must've been trained. It definitely worked and She smiled and said "Schprachst di nisht Deutsche?!?" as if she was stroking my neck. The person next to me just thought I dropped my cell and picked it up and handed it to me. I was more shocked than anything else. I was just texting my Father that we were taking off 2 hours late. ::)it was 7 or 8 years ago. I was just a dumb teenager. its probably past the statue of limitations & they probably have discretion and it was in Zurich.

That is assault and battery.