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Home » Southwest Airlines » Southwest Flight Attendant Assaulted, Loses Two Teeth
Southwest Airlines

Southwest Flight Attendant Assaulted, Loses Two Teeth

Matthew Klint Posted onMay 25, 2021May 25, 2021 20 Comments

Southwest Airlines Lost Teeth

Chew on this: between April 8th and May 15th there were 477 passenger misconduct incidents on Southwest Airlines alone. One incident, which occurred on Sunday, resulted in a flight attendant losing two teeth.

An Alarming Number Of Misconduct Incidents On Southwest Airlines, Including Lost Teeth

On Sunday morning, Southwest Flight 700 departed Sacramento (SMF) for San Diego (SAN). A passenger onboard flouted crew member instructions and became even more belligerent after landing. As a Southwest spokesperson explained:

“The passenger repeatedly ignored standard inflight instructions and became verbally and physically abusive upon landing. Law enforcement officials were requested to meet the flight upon arrival, and the passenger was taken into custody.  We do not condone or tolerate verbal or physical abuse of our flight crews, who are responsible for the safety of our passengers. ”

Lyn Montgomery, President of Transport Workers Union (TWU) Local 556, confirmed:

“This past weekend, one of our flight attendants was seriously assaulted, resulting in injuries to the face and a loss of two teeth.”

While Southwest may not tolerate it, it is certainly occurring…at an alarming rate. Even as the U.S. Department of Transportation has stepped up the severity and publicity surrounding passenger fines for poor behavior, 477 incidents suggests that the message has not sunk in yet.

To address this matter, the union representing Southwest Airlines flight attendants has proposed three remedies:

  1. Warn passnegers
  2. Be consistent
  3. Increase air marshals

I don’t fly Southwest, but I know when I fly United or American the warnings are very clear: I’m not sure how to make it any clearer. I also am not sure more air marshals are the answer (versus more fines).

But consistently is key. As the union notes:

“No passenger should be removed from one flight only to be permitted to board the very next Southwest Airlines flight after a non-compliance incident. We ask that you take a strong stance to ensure that unruly passengers are not welcome to travel with us. Period. Full stop.”

That is an inherently reasonable position.

CONCLUSION

A Southwest flight attendant was attacked after landing on Sunday and lost two teeth. Over the last month, Southwest has experienced an alarming number of misconduct incidents onboard. The solution remains an enigma, though it starts with aggressive and consistent enforcement of rules already on the books.

image: Southwest Airlines

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About Author

Matthew Klint

Matthew is an avid traveler who calls Los Angeles home. Each year he travels more than 200,000 miles by air and has visited more than 135 countries. Working both in the aviation industry and as a travel consultant, Matthew has been featured in major media outlets around the world and uses his Live and Let's Fly blog to share the latest news in the airline industry, commentary on frequent flyer programs, and detailed reports of his worldwide travel.

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20 Comments

  1. Paolo Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 7:53 am

    Serious prison time is the only thing they’ll understand. We NEVER get to hear the outcome of the court cases, presumably because they’re ‘small beer’ in the context of police killings, mass shootings etc. But it has to be more than a token fine and a ‘no fly’ order, surely. I’d give this one 5 years in the slammer; plenty of time to reflect on the error of his ways.
    I’d favour making flight crews a protected profession, the same as health professionals, law enforcement and some others…but so many of them are complete arseholes, there’d be a likelihood of the misuse of such a designation.

  2. ChuckMO Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 8:19 am

    National No-Fly List coming soon? Get banned on Airline A, and Airlines B C D E F G H etc…won’t allow you onboard either. Maybe the time has come.

  3. Tom Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 8:38 am

    I stopped flying SWA once they started their power trip of a campaign called “Let’s target handicap children and their families”. No apologies but rather they doubled down on their disgusting stance. They are a pathetic excuse for an airline and I don’t feel sorry for their poor publicity at all. For the individual FA who was assaulted, that’s clearly inexcusable and hope he/she leaves SWA.

  4. PatrickMO Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 8:39 am

    As much as I’d like to see a National No-Fly list for these types of incidents, you know there will be people who get put on them for actions that don’t warrant it or are just no correct.
    And once on, whether deserved or not, how do you get off?

  5. ChuckMO Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 9:17 am

    There would need to be some sort of appeals process of course. Most likely tiered levels of banning based on the severity of the incident. 1-2-3 year bans and lifetime bans as well. The Devil in the details but in the case of aviation, the needs/rights of the many outweigh those of the few. How many people have to be inconvenienced by these idiots before the industry and passengers alike demand more permanent solutions?

  6. DCA will always be "Reagan" Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 10:23 am

    You didn’t answer the key question. Was the abusive passenger wearing a mask?

  7. Mark Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 10:54 am

    I’ve always wondered how Southwest follows up with customer issues, in terms of identifying the passenger. With assigned seats, airlines will usually know who is in seat 21A. With Southwest and open seating I don’t know how they know who is sitting where.

  8. Tim Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 11:13 am

    I would go a step further and have airlines band together to refuse service across carriers to people who behave in such a fashion and get cited with a non-compliance issue. What’s the point of refusing them a flight on Southwest when they can book the next flight on Delta, then United and so on…?

  9. CHRIS Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 1:08 pm

    …..or we could just punish the offenders. Of course, its going to be hard to do that since we’re abolishing the police, abolishing incarceration (except for orange man supporters), refusing to prosecute because holding people accountable for their actions is now racist….or something. Can’t have it both ways. When there is no law, no order…society breaks down. Buckle up everyone….the vegetable in the White House is doubling down on the chaos and its only a matter of time until its on your doorstep.

  10. Jerry Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 1:25 pm

    You have to pay for alcoholic beverages on Southwest, so unless the FAMs get unlimited drink coupons, I don’t think they’ll be able to work Southwest flights.

  11. David Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 1:43 pm

    Wait a minute. Who’s going to arrest these losers after the police are defunded??

  12. K Miller Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 1:44 pm

    I agree a No Fly list that is used by all major carriers. I was told by a gate agent for American last week. A BIG man. That female gate agents are also getting attacked. This has to stop. Flying should be a privilege with class, manors and kindness.

  13. JM Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 2:40 pm

    There is a different type of clientele flying these days than I have ever seen in my 30+ years as a flight attendant with multiple airlines, and a different type of clientele than I have ever been exposed to in my life off of the aircraft. There are also a lot – a lot – of customers who are under the influence of marijuana and other substances. There was a time when flight attendants rather rudely and snobbishly referred to a certain type of passenger as “trailer trash”. These are not those people. We would have to come far up in behavioral standards to reach the “trailer trash” level. It’s a whole new world out there. It is as if some prison for violent offenders has opened all the gates and bought the former inmates airline tickets. It is frightening and concerning; there will be many more reports of assaults and fights.

  14. Dale Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 2:58 pm

    Back to the Bible or back to the Jungle.

  15. Right-This-Way Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 3:21 pm

    If the airlines would stop “accommodating” these criminals by simply removing them and then allowing them to get on the next flight out, maybe this would stop. If you’re (all airlines) are not going to arrest and prosecute then these no fly lists mean nothing. They need to march these morons past all other airline ticket counters, advise them not to book him/her and escort them out to the curb — “you’re on your own!!” What else is it going to take, the murder of airline staff or another passenger inflight onboard the aircraft. Hundreds of laws on the books yet the criminals just seem to walk away.

  16. Hank Reply
    May 25, 2021 at 10:51 pm

    America is speeding head first into its final days.

  17. DC not in DC Reply
    May 26, 2021 at 5:51 pm

    Put a uniformed TSA agent in aisle seating on every flight. This would be a visual deterrent, unlike air marshals, who do not wear uniforms or flash badges.

    TSA agents could document behavior in support of the flight crew.

    “Transportation safety” has little to do with checkin. 99.99% of the problems happen on board. TSA should be on board with this.

  18. Scott Reply
    May 26, 2021 at 11:19 pm

    I think you need to dig a little further on this story. The person that assaulted the flight attendant was not the person that wasn’t properly wearing her mask. There is a video of it and the woman that recorded the video explained what happened on the local news in San Diego. No one should ever assault a flight attendant, but it sounds like there is more to it than a anti-masker assaulting a flight attendant.

    If the link works, here is the story: https://www.cbs8.com/article/news/crime/fight-southwest-plane-san-diego-flight-attendant-punch-lost-teeth-arrest-mask-dispute/509-21050218-6f19-4428-b1c0-e70ea42fe515

  19. Min Reply
    May 27, 2021 at 12:55 pm

    The cabin crew aware what company she works for, the started of all madness low fare which translate to attract all wrong clienteles.
    Perhaps she should show “love” slogan
    No crying please to all Southwest staff

  20. anonymous Reply
    May 28, 2021 at 3:13 pm

    @JM, thank you for your service. Some of us know you have a difficult job and we appreciate you.

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