Angered by a long ground delay upon arrival in Florida, a woman lit up a cigarette in her seat, refused to extinguish it, and instead began blowing smoke into the face of her seatmate.
Annoyed Over Delay, Woman Smokes On Spirit Airlines
There are few things more annoying than landing at your destination only to have to sit on the plane and wait due to congestion on the ground or the gate being occupied. For smokers in need of a puff, this is an even more pressing problem.
After a Spirit Airlines flight from Detroit (DTW) to Fort Lauderdale (FLL) landed on Tuesday, it spent nearly an hour on the ground while waiting for a gate.
This was too much for one passenger, who proceeded to pull out a cigarette, light it up, and start smoking.
A passenger seated behind her, who suffers from asthma, protested. She responded by blowing smoke in his face. Flight attendants were altered and told her to stop, but she refused, finishing her cigarette. The butt of her cigarette, however, was collected and held as evidence.
Police were called and met the aircraft at the gate. By that time, the woman had fallen asleep (or was at least feigning slumber). Police shook her awake, then escorted her off the aircraft to the cheers of her fellow passengers.
This is not the first such incident on Spirit Airlines. In 2019, a man was busted for smoking on a fight to Minneapolis. He claimed he had “forgotten” that he could not smoke onboard.
Spirit Airlines confirmed the incident took place:
“When Flight 845 from Detroit was taxiing to the gate in Fort Lauderdale, a passenger inexplicably decided to light a cigarette in violation of federal law. Flight attendants noticed the odor and the other guests were quick to point out who was responsible and hand over what remained of the extinguished cigarette. Our crew summoned law enforcement officers to have them waiting at the gate to remove the passenger.”
I’m gong to assume this woman was not wearing a mask while she was smoking, so that’s another strike against her.
CONCLUSION
Have you ever wondered why new airplanes still have ashtrays on lavatory doors? It is precisely for this reason.
Look, I understand the frustration over a long taxi to the gate, especially for a smoker needing a nicotine fix, but it has been 30 years since you could smoke on domestic U.S. flights. There is simply no excuse for her conduct and I hope she now receives a huge fine to serve as a deterrent for others who may contemplate similar action.
> Read More: Hilarious – Man “Forgets” He Cannot Smoke On Spirit Flight
“Have you ever wondered why new airplanes still have ashtrays on lavatory doors? It is precisely for this reason.”
Please elaborate. It’s so they CAN smoke in the lavatory? I’m confused.
Tennen is correct. So if someone does decide to light one, it can be safely extinguished.
@Lukas, it’s so that you can safely extinguish/dispose of them. Otherwise, people would throw them in the trash or flush them down the toilet. In case you’re wondering, both are really, really bad.
@Matthew, I hope that she also gets a ticket to prison, in addition to a hefty fine…
She should face not just a hefty fine for violating the smoking ban, but assault charges for blowing smoke in the face of an asthmatic passenger. If that person could have life-threatening reactions to smoke, that could be attempted murder or assault with a deadly weapon charges.
Spirit+Florida=Trash.
They should rename Spirit airlines to the Trump MAGAtard express. Only the best and the brightest…
Seems most of the videos of angry Spirit customers in Florida are minorities. I glad to see his outreach to them showing how the Democratic Party has used them for years worked out.
Yeah! We white people can be as big of an A__ hole as anyone!
I watched the video but didn’t read the article. Was the issue the female passenger or the police officer? They were both wearing their masks below their noses. Many lives were endangered in this video, it’s difficult to watch.
They should both be summarily executed.
I am soooo glad I was not the passenger she blew the smoke on the face. I could go to jail but I would make her swallow the lit cigarette.
Flying in the United States is hell. And Fort Lauderdale is the hottest part of hell.
I imagine that sometime in the near future, there’ will be another reality TV series about an airline. And of course, the producers will choose to base it around Spirit Airlines. Because that’s where the entertaining stuff is goin’ down!
Seriously – why do all these incidents involve Spirit/Frontier Airlines and/or the state of Florida? Greyhound fares get Greyhound-class passengers. Maybe Congress should pass a minimum fare requirement – set the hurdle at $150 each direction/$300 roundtrip and I guarantee these incidents would rapidly decrease.
Matthew, I swear to God this kind of [redacted by admin] only happens in America. Jeez I’m still laughing like crazy over this news. Who would have even thought of lighting a cigaret in a freaking plane?? And what’s more spectacular is that this lady proceeded to blow smoke to her seatmate. I’m gonna pee my pants cause this [redacted by admin] is too ridiculous to be true. Was it a kind of protest or some? Karen really thought she did something. I’m really curios how much does she have to pay now! If someone knows, update me on this, please!
Even if it’s the airline’s fault, give the respect flight attendants and the crew deserve, it’s not their fault and their literally attending your needs while on air