Word to the wise: aircraft overhead bins are shared space. The space immediately above your row does not belong to you. Bin space is allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. If only someone explained that to the obnoxious buffoon onboard a Delta flight on Tuesday…
A man boards Delta flight 2646 from Tampa to New York LaGuardia. He walks to his seat and sees that there are already bags above his unoccupied row in the overhead locker. So doing what any reasonable person would, he hurls them into the aisle so he can place his own bag directly above his seat.
Fellow passengers protest and are cursed out. A FA is called over and she is cursed out. His wife tries to calm him down, but he’s angry now. The FA tells him that he will need to gather his bags and exit the aircraft. He refuses. Police are called.
That’s where our video picks up:
Man kicked off Delta flight to LGA after he yelled at another passenger, got belligerent with a flight attendant pic.twitter.com/G0EHiGQxBN
— Kellie Cowan (@KellieCowan) May 30, 2017
…“Sir, are you going to get off the aircraft or am I going to have to use force?” an officer asks.
“I don’t think you should have to use force,” the man replies.
Suddenly, an officer grabs the passenger by the back of the neck, in an attempt to force him out of his seat.
The passenger even claimed to be a police officer as he left the aircraft:
Finally off. Officers applauded after this man is removed from flight from Tampa to New York pic.twitter.com/spGO9T1Tf0
— Kellie Cowan (@KellieCowan) May 30, 2017
Sensing that this is not a Dr. Dao moment, Delta quickly rallied behind its flight crew:
The Delta team acted as true professionals as they navigated this challenging customer issue during the board process when a customer began removing and throwing items from the overhead bin. Harassing our customers and crew members is not acceptable. We are sorry to our customers who had to endure this disruption.
The flight landed over two hours late in New York City:
CONCLUSION
Passengers shrieked in horror as Dr. Dao was pulled out of his seat. Passengers broke into applause as this man was pulled out of his seat. That’s telling.
What do you think?
(H/T: View from the Wing)
Probably a tool all his life. If what he did is true, he deserves a little Dr. Dao treatment. Nice job by law enforcement on this one.
I don’t know… I just don’t understand why these things have to keep happening.
I think they’ve always been happening, it’s just that now everybody has a hi-res video recorder in their pocket and can post it literally seconds after the event is over, so we’re seeing footage of it a lot more.
But I do agree that it’s sad that people have trouble mustering a modicum of decorum and grace in a tube full of strangers for four hours.
I don’t understand why FAs didn’t help passenger in arranging overhead bins and/or offer to put carry-ons somewhere else if the bins already full. Is that the custom in american airlines? Purely asking here….
FAs need to be trained to actively control overhead bin space. Airlines have made it almost punitive to check a bag (unless you’re an elite member of the their mileage program) resulting in way more carryons needing the same amount of overhead bin space. If an FA sees someone place a bag in the overhead bin then continue to their seat further back in the cabin, FAs need to intervene.
So you’re saying someone sitting at the back of the plane stows his/her two bags in the first overhead bin of economy is entitled to do so, thus taking space away from those actually sitting under that bin? I’ve seen this happen many times and those sitting in the front seats find no overhead space available. Is that right? While I don’t necessarily condone this fellow’s behaviour, I can see why he might be irritated if those bags did not belong to someone sitting under that bin space.
I agree it is irritating, very irritating, but the solution is certainly not to throw the bag out.
Once in a while if I am among the last to board and see a spot further up in the cabin, I will place my bag there. Courtesy may dictate using the space above your seat, but sometimes it is impossible. I’m not sure whether it was possible or not in this case for the passenger who placed his/her bags above the problem child.
If you are in what Delta calls “Comfort+”, there is this on their web site:
“DEDICATED BIN SPACE
Rest easy knowing your things are at hand, with dedicated overhead bin space available right above your seat.”
Yeah so, you can see why a pax might think they are ENTITLED to the space right over their head. Imagine this person had buzzed the FA to remove the bags instead of doing it themselves? This story ends up being all about the passenger instead of about Delta’s idiotic advertisement.
Should the passenger actively asking the FA or the FA actively assisting the passanger and managing the use of overhead bin?
This was my first thought. Then I remembered a few months ago on a VX flight where someone with priority boarding but seated way further back in the cabin placed their bag above my row…the VERY FIRST row of Economy. I made a comment to the FA and she just kind of shrugged like it wasn’t her problem. Well, yes, it absolutely WAS her problem. Had I not been one of the other first people aboard with adequate space for my carryon, I would have politely asked everyone in the vicinity if that was their bag. If nobody answered in the affirmative, I absolutely would have placed the bag in the aisle for the FA to deal with and for the other passenger, seated much further back, to reckon with.
Airlines are ultimately at fault for this. Nickel and diming everyone so that nobody wants to check a bag will 100% lead to insufficient overhead bin space. If airlines are forcing FAs to act as policing agents on the aircraft, then they need to do so in ALL situations, not just when FAs feel like it or it allows them a power trip to have someone removed.
If an FA sees someone place their carryon in a bin then continue further back in the cabin, it is most certainly his/her responsibility to work with that passenger to ensure their bag stays with them. It’s not only for the comfort and convenience of ALL passengers, but also for safety. We aren’t supposed to let our checked bags out of our sight, why should we be able to do so with carryons?
Adam, I must admit that if you did this and I was the FA, I would throw your bags off the plane.
We’re taking about economy class bin space for economy class passengers — not poaching first class bins.
Virtually any frequent flier will tell you, if you board and there appears to be full bins above your seat, you put your bag in an open bin before reaching your seat. That’s how it works. This guy was clearly a clown and was rightfully tossed off the plane. I would have applauded too.
Correct — sometimes you take what you can get even if there ends up being some space in the back. Better safe than sorry (and having to gate check your bag).
So, in america, FA have no obligation to manage overhead bins? Everyone for themself? I see….
The question is how they are managed. Is there a reasonable expectation that you will have the bin space over your head on a full flight? I don’t think so.
I only fly economy once in US domestic from LA to NY. But I fly a lot in asian. Even in LCC, the FA seems to manage it. Then again the policy of number and size of carry-on might be different. However, I underlined the willingness of the FA to contribute actively in solving the overhead bin issue, rather than just welcoming passenger to plane. Well, this is a new knowledge for me.
This guy was a loud mouthed, obnoxious New Yorker; unfortunately, his conduct seems to be the modus operandi on flights these days. As I’ve stated before, being a passenger on any domestic commercial aircraft in the USA, is tantamount to riding the New York City subway. There are similar characteristics between the subway, and the aircraft, such as pushing and shoving during the boarding and deplaning process, kicking people’s seats in front, loud mouthed, rude passengers, passengers talking loudly on cell phones (so loud, that at times it is impossible to hear the crew announcements), smelly passengers who don’t use deodorant, passengers with tatoos and ringson belly buttons, etc. In this specific case, the obnoxious fool should have been arrested, and charged with interfering with a flight crew. Also, his wife also interfered with the arrest.
do much over zealous by the police!!i get it u should be able to put at least one of your bags in the over hea1the overhead bin hoggers were there first not good even if i’m in FC someone gets there first annoying esp if they put 2-3 or more bags up there!!! it hapens if i carry a magazine on they say put it into your bag but somehow peolpe get away with it!!!and HIOG ALL OF THE overhead bins and even try to remove ur one bag or put theer 2 bags on top of your one in the overhead bin