How much compensation from an airline is due—if any—when a passenger attacks you onboard? What if the airline should have known better? That’s what we’ll explore today in the context of a Delta Air Lines flight to Los Angeles and a woman who was punched by her seatmate and then offered a paltry “goodwill gesture” from Delta in response.
Is 4,000 SkyMiles Appropriate For Attack From Drunken, Vaping Seatmate On Delta Flight?
While flying from Detroit (DTW) to Los Angeles (LAX) on Delta flight 908, a woman was punched in the eye by her male seatmate.
“At first, I didn’t even realize what was going on (I was watching a movie with noise-canceling headphones), but the flight attendant saw it happen. Apparently, this guy had been vaping, touching other passengers inappropriately, was extremely inebriated, and overall caused a major disturbance all over the plane. The whole situation was chaotic, and I ended up with eye soreness and overall being extremely rattled and shaking for the rest of the flight.”
This incident occurred while the man was being escorted to the back of the plane (after the vaping and inappropriate touching). A good samaritan passenger stepped up to sit next to the passenger for the remainder of the flight to reduce the risk of any further antics.
After the flight, the woman complained and was offered only 4,000 SkyMiles, which Delta flyers know is hardly enough for a drink in a Delta SkyClub…
Should Delta Have Stepped Up?
I understand that Delta did not punch this woman. It’s not like Delta can possibly control the sporadic outbreaks of every customer onboard.
But this case is a little different. First, he had already been caught vaping. Second, he had already been caught touching others inappropriately during the flight. As a result, I probably would not have diverted, but I would have zip tied him even before leading him to the back of the plane… flight attendants were on notice that this passenger was a ticking time bomb.
The fact that he then suckered punched the woman comes less as a surprise considering what he had already did. Furthermore, considering he was reportedly inebriated, maybe gate agents or flight attendants should have noticed his condition… before takeoff.
In that sense, I do think Delta is at least partially responsible. Offering only 4,000 SkyMiles truly is an insult…I just don’t understand why an airline could be so paltry in terms of compensation. It’s really worse than offering nothing at all.
CONCLUSION
Delta offered a woman only 4,000 after she was unexpectedly punched by another passenger on a flight to Los Angeles. While Delta was not the aggressor, the decision to transport him to the back of the plane put passengers in danger, including this woman. Considering how much it costs to redeem miles with Delta, a far higher compensation amount would be more appropriate.
image: Delta // Hat Tip: View From The Wing
Delta at least partially owns this situation. While Delta’s reaction is abominable, does it truly surprise anyone? Let’s not delude ourselves here, it’s not like Delta actually cares about passengers and if anything they care even less about engaged loyalty members. I loathe spurious lawsuits but if I were the woman I’d be talking to some lawyers.
@Christian … +1 . Absolutely consult some lawyers . Certainly a cause for diversion , hopefully in Texas .
Texas. lol
What’s next, having the Feds offer people $$$$ when illegals commit violent crimes and worse against native, law abiding citizens??
What dumb, stupid, and pointless thing to compare this to, Y’all really just want to keep hijacking the comments section.
Not everyone has your world view a##clown. Intelligent people see what is going on while you hide your head in another man’s crotch and consider it normal behavior.
What did Tony Soprano tell Dr Melfi about video? Perfect gif for you.
And it’s people like you that make the world such a rotten place, with your vile hatred and bigotry, you disgusting useless piece of dribblepiss.
@Batchcaloupe … +1 . They certainly know about the Venezuelan gangs , and worse .
Cancelled flight 12-16,000 miles
Delayed bag 5,000 miles
May I punch the gate agent and pay for 4,000 miles?
Your posts are usually of a much higher caliber, which is why many of us read them. This is VFTW stuff.
Why should she have been given anything? If she wants to, sue the pax. She isn’t owed anything from Skypesos.
If he was inebriated in the airport, he shouldn’t have been let on the plane in the first place – Delta’s fault. Or, if he was served alcohol to inebriation while on the plane – still Delta’s fault. There’s negligence in both circumstances as Delta has the obligation for passengers’ safety, and that applies broadly to both getting them to their destination safely through the sky and in preventing passengers from being attacked while on their (Delta’s_ property. I think it could be argued that Delta did not make their best effort to ensure the woman’s safety given the inebriated passenger was clearly causing a disturbance before the battery occurred. Whether you want to blame the gate agent, the FAs, and/or the pilot is for her lawyers to decide, but Delta needs to be handed a devastating blow for this to learn a lesson. Airlines won’t start caring for passengers until they start to feel it in their bottom line.
@DCAWABN … +1 . Exactly .
Agree 100%! I would NOT have accepted the offered miles and you can bet I would be on the phone to my Lawyer upon landing.
Agreed Brandon.
DL now uses AI to auto reply with compensation to all complaints. If you want a human to review the complaint you must followup on the auto reply that it’s not acceptable resolution.