Yesterday, I wrote about JT Genter being kicked off an American Airlines flight for moving the bag of a crewmember without permission. Now the flight attendant has purportedly come forward to tell his side of the story and Genter has responded.
Flight Attendant Claims JT Genter Refused To Comply Before He Was Removed From American Airlines Flight
I won’t rehash the entire story, but you can read my post on what happened here.
> Read More: Travel Blogger Kicked Off American Airlines Flight By Power-Tripping Flight Attendant
The flight attendant in question, who identified himself as Scott Shoup, appears to be an AA flight attendant based in New York JFK. He left the following comment on View From The Wing:
I am the flight attendant whose bag was removed from the overhead bin by Mr. Genter. I agree that he should not be removed from the flight for this reason. If he had simply asked someone in the crew about space for his bag, I would have been happy to move mine to accommodate his. There was more than ample space further forward and I was not married to the spot above his seat.
I contend that Mr. Genter was well aware that my bag was a crew bag ( I have crew tags on it…) and took umbrage over the fact that my bag was in “his” overhead bin. Again, I would have moved it for him if asked and I don’t think this conflict over space is a proper reason to remove him.
The real reason he was removed was because he indicated that he did not have to comply with crew member instructions, basically defying me and 3 other flight attendants. Mr. Genter indicated to me, the purser and 2 other flight attendants that he did not have to follow the rules and there was nothing we could do about it.
I think it is reasonable to expect that this defiant and non compliant behavior would continue after take off. That is a problem not only for the security of the flight but also for the financial bottom line of my company. If he chose to remain non compliant and an incident arose with him inflight we would have been forced to divert to another airport to remove him there, costing the airline and the passengers money and time. In consultation with the captain and corporate security we determined that it was prudent to have Mr. Genter removed to avoid disrupting the otherwise normal operation of this flight.
Of course, at this point, we can only speculate as to whether this really was the flight attendant in question, but it represents an extraordinary escalation of the sort of conflict that is typically handled behind the scenes.
There are two big differences among the two accounts:
- Was the bag clearly labeled with crew tags?
- Did Genter say he would not comply with crewmember instructions (“The real reason he was removed was because he indicated that he did not have to comply with crew member instructions, basically defying me and 3 other flight attendants.”)
The second post, in particular, seems like a huge stretch. I cannot believe Getner would ever say that…and pushing back on moving his bag to business class because it contained his electronic devices and medication does not strike me as “delaying crewmember instructions” as much as it does reasoning with an unreasonable demand. Flight attendants should be treated with respect, but they are not gods onboard. You do not have to follow unlawful regulations…
As I said yesterday, I’ve known JT for years and it would surprise me greatly if it turned out the flight attendant was telling the truth. Genter also claims to have recordings, which I urge him to release at this point, especially after his honesty has been called into question by this flight attendant.
The flight attendant should have de-escalated the situation instead of making it worse. Shoup now uses carefully-tailored language in his side of the story (“I think it is reasonable to expect that this defiant and non compliant behavior would continue after take off. That is a problem not only for the security of the flight but also for the financial bottom line of my company.”), but I believe Genter that he was not at all defiant in the way the flight attendant alleges.
Genter Responds To Flight Attendant
Genter provided the following response to Live And Let’s Fly:
“If this is a statement from the actual flight attendant, this is a slam dunk defamation case. The flight attendant cannot prove these claims, and I have audio recording of the incident that proves these claims are false.
That’s why these claims are being made in a non-verified forum (a blog comment section where you can list any name you want when commenting). If any of the crew members wants to make these claims on the record, I will respond accordingly. Otherwise, this statement should be disregarded as an anonymous internet comment.
It’s worth noting that American Airlines continues to decline to comment in the crew member’s defense. So, it’s seems the airline knows the crew’s actions were out of line. And it’s possible that the crew member is already facing disciplinary action based on internal reporting by the gate supervisor who was a party to the situation and listened to the audio recording.”
CONCLUSION
It’s rare to see a flight attendant take to social media (and even use his real name…) to offer his side of the story, but I’m glad he stepped forward. He’s either correct, or his post provides more fodder for his termination. Because I don’t think Genter lied, I suspect the latter is correct…and I hope Genter will release the audio files so we can listen ourselves.
Seems like there have been some incidents with FAs going on power trips/being flippant these days. Saw a post on a different website earlier today about a FA treating another customer poorly and this person said they took pictures to support their story.
Point is, a lot of these conflicts between FAs and customers end up being “customer said vs FA said” with some proof on either side. It’s not really helping FAs and their case if a lot of similar events keep happening like this.
@Malik … FA did nothing wrong . FA bags are always marked with “Crew” tags . Pax ought never have moved a crew bag ( or any bag ) without permission . Pax ought to keep his mitts to himself . Pax ought not act like a “wronged tantrum” . He was properly invited to leave .
Feds did nothing wrong by correcting the politician-actor at the news conference . He was out-of-line and did not follow instructions . He was properly invited to leave .
Well in general I think the prudent move is to just shut up and do what the FA says and handle it later, most of us who fly frequently have run into the power trippy FA and the idea that there can be no conversation at all without being removed is over the top. I have run into an FA going to a level 10 when boarding a flight because I wanted to put my large backback (my only carry on) in the overhead instead of the seat in front of me. He was making quite a scene with all of the customers in Comfort Plus about “saving the space for big bags” during boarding. When I tried to explain that it was my only carry on and that I preferred it to be overhead, he said “I’ve told you where it goes, do you really want to have to find another flight?”
I relented but the way he treated me throughout the flight honestly made me wonder if the police were going to be at the gate when we landed. That kind of behaviour has to stop.
Shouldn’t you have checked-in your “large backpack” , instead of trying to take up two spaces in the overhead ?
Release the audio!
Why was the audio recorded in the first place ?
Maybe it’s time for FAs to wear body cameras just like police officers. Cameras don’t lie.
Sad, but true !
@CM … Maybe it’s time for pax to not move other people’s bags ? Ya think ?
As I said before, if flying alone, I use air travel as a way to give my voice a break. I literally enter an airport mute and do not talk again until I reach my destination. I started doing this many years ago and I think it is a great way of taking care of my health as well as avoiding any sort of unnecessary confrontation like the one described in this post. Yes, I may have to respond to some questions at check in if it is an international flight but other than that I prepare myself for a quiet time.
First, I dress and pack accordingly. It is extremely rare I need to interact with a TSA agent as me and my things will go through x-ray without an issues. Once I pass TSA, I head to lounge or gate and the only words that come out are good morning/evening and thank you. Nothing else unless I really need to speak with someone regarding my travel. Same goes at the gate and boarding. “Hi”, “Good morning”, “Thank you”. Once on the plane, I place my stuff on the proper location (usually I board first so no issues in having to move other people’s stuff), I take my seat, put my noise cancelling AirPods on and try to snooze or focus on a book. Seat mate comes, I nod or say good morning and that’s it. Interactions with FA won’t go more than requesting water when asked for my beverage preference and I usually skip any food. I comply with seatbelt signs, only go to bathroom when allowed, etc… Yes, it might seem robotic but it works very well for me. I have been flying for over 30 years and have seen FA behavior deteriorate a lot so I do not want to have any interaction with them unless really necessary.
@Santastico … Good idea . Yet where is your sense of humour ? Somehow , I don’t detect it .
The FA does seem over the top, but he said that Genter “indicated” he wouldnt comply with instructions, which doesnt mean he explicitly said it, and is totally open to interpretation.
I hate using the “both sides” argument, but this really seems like both sides are at fault, so it should be dropped. Genter shouldn’t have moved the bag. If I board late and the overhead above my seat is full, i don’t just start clearing space for my stuff, I suck it up and put it farther back.
On the other hand, this FA is a drama queen who escalated beyond a reasonable level.
Both sides should be admonished, and move on.
I’m going to preface this with a majority of FAs are nice people, but a few bad apples always spoil the barrel. It ultimately comes down to how they’re trained the lack of incentive to be kind while on board. Sure, things can affect people and people have bad days, but being a professional and on the job means that you don’t take this out on different people.
Recently, I flew YYZ to DTW in F with DL. Long story short, I was in 1A on the short hop but was repeatedly ignored by the FA in F where she ignored me during the PDB. During the snack service, she skipped me in the order initially but got to me after serving everyone else, even though I wasn’t sleeping. When I ordered a sprite no ice, she kept asking me to repeat it as if I wasn’t speaking English clearly which was odd as I was born and raised in the US. She ended up not serving me the drink until someone else told her but she didn’t really apologize but we were already descending into DTW and I refused the drink, but she still placed it on my seat and some spilled on me. It is much ado about nothing over two stupid drinks and I can live without having beverages on a short 43 minute hop but it’s the level disrespect that is shown that affects customers. If you’re not willing to be professional towards customers as a person in the service industry, then this isn’t the right job.
Now THAT’s the ” Delta ‘difference’ ! ” …lol
JT conveniently forgot to address the claim that he should have known it was a crew bag. US flight attendants almost all have unique-enough looking bags that without crew tags should be identifiable by most frequent travelers.
It’s probably best for both sides to let this fade into the past and chalk this up as “Two wrongs don’t make a right”. Power tripping FAs exist and he certainly ran into one here. The Captain has final say and the crew can always operate under the highly subjective “Safety” umbrella which lets them remove pax from flights for really any or no reason. We’ve seen the near-weekly videos of this happening so it should come as no surprise that eventually it happened to a blogger an I am sure will happen again in the future.
Jesus Christ can JT be a bigger moron. Let me create my own fake controversy by being an idiot and then generate as much clicks and publicity as I can from it. This guy seems insufferable
@Cy … +1 .
This is super simple: JT has proof of what happened. His withholding it makes him look guilty. The only viable alternative is that he’s exploring a spurious lawsuit. Neither is a good look.
I think it’s fair for him to think carefully before releasing the audio. I do hope he releases it.
Why? This seems pretty clear cut. Even if there is some consideration that would make speaking to a lawyer advisable – which I’m not at all convinced of – then that call could have easily been completed on the same day.
If you’re innocent of something YOU have brought to the court of public opinion, then show your proof. Otherwise you look like a sale-aggrandizing jerk.
Don’t you think that demand makes him “guilty until proven innocent?”
Why should he have to prove anything if he was let onto the next AA flight and offered a double upgrade to first class? You don’t get that for defying crew member instructions.
Why would he record an audio in the first place ?
Because FAs can be liars and if they all team up to frame a flyer, it may be the only way to exonerate yourself.
Yet , the pax is the one who moved the FA’s bag without permission . That is not in dispute . And That is the violation of common courtesy . The pax cannot “exonerate yourself” if the pax did in fact move the bag without permission .
Scott Shoup is currently in London at Fetish Week (no, I’m not making this up), which is on this week. This is why he was in such a mood – the PE cabin was almost full with non-paying nonrevs, most of them his friends.
Scott is also coordinating responses to this story in their internal Facebook groups. I think he knows he’s done.
well this is getting interesting….
I don’t know either person, but I do know a travel journalist/blogger (whatever you want to call the type of job), I asked him what he thought and he said that Genter is a nice guy who would not purposely defy any airline crew, especially without a good reason.
He personally thinks it was a case of poor communication, the FA had an understanding of the situation, Genter had another understanding and communication broke down.
At the end of the day, Genter should not have been removed, we are talking about moving a bag, not anything more serious.
What my aviation journalist felt needed to have happened, is the Pilot or another authority figure should have intervened, asked Genter to apologize for moving the FAs bag, gave Genter a choice to either put his bag in Business or find a space somewhere else and called it a day.
The removal was the issue.
Grifter threatening to sue already.
AA needs to ban this hustler ASAP.
As a Purser for a major US airline, what many of you are not aware, is that when a f/a puts their luggage above an overhead bin, that’s usually because depending where they are assigned to sit (jumpsuit location), the FAA must approve an overhead bin location for their luggage; as the closets available are small and cannot accommodate everyone’s crew luggage.
I’m not here to defend the attendant or the passenger.. just stating the facts. There have been countless of instances, where the passenger just has to have their bag right above their seat and not 2 feet away on the next overhead bin,… and to avoid an idiotic conflict, just as we’re seeing, I kindly remove my bag from my assigned overhead compartment in 4A, and move it to the one in 3A. Just makes life easier for me on the airplane and sets the correct tone for the flight and the passenger I am dealing with as well.
A travel blogger acting entitled? Who does he think he is? Matthew Klint?
Ouch.
I’ve had a run in with a FA several years back. Flight was crowded and I sat on the second to last row. The FA had blocked the last row on the right hand side with her bag sitting on the middle seat which stayed there during takeoff, a violation of FAA requirements that all items be stored for take off.
Once we were airborne, I moved her bag to the window seat so I could sit on the last row. She was mad as hell with me, but I responded, “You mean the bag that was not stored during takeoff off?” Her jaw dropped to the floor, then she walked away. During beverage service, I pretended to be asleep to avoid any more conversations.
Once we landed, I made sure to exit without acknowledging her.
The world is crashing down around us: war in the Middle East and Ukraine, children dying from Myanmar to Gaza, an unhinged bobo is president of the United States unleashing troops in his own cities and this is the kind on complete nonsense that preoccupies you people: an entitled jerk and a petulant FA having a completely ridiculous exchange over a bag? For the love of God, put things in perspective and stop indulging this type of non-story which sounds like bait-click or AI gone insane.
Well it at least beats abusing alcohol, tobacco (or other ‘smokables’), drugs, domestic abuse or self-harm to dull the pain of being exposed to the constant, intractable grind of the 24 hour repeating {sensationalized} news cycle & reality that we confront everyday now !
…”just sayin’.,., “you do you” , by all means !