① Passenger hits flight attendant and threatens her
Several incidents recently occurred of passengers opening the emergency exit door on the plane.
A precarious situation ensued when passengers opened the emergency exit door during landing because they felt claustrophobic. This action directly affects safety and could have led to a major accident.
Onboard, the behavior of problematic passengers, who often behave absurdly, often stirs controversy.
Not only do they harm other passengers and flight attendants, but they also cause a stir and even resort to violence. In February 2020, an incident occurred on a United Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Tokyo, where a passenger threatened and assaulted a flight attendant.
A 52-year-old man named Seksan Kumtong, who lives in California, began acting strangely right after boarding the plane. He kept knocking on the restroom door that another passenger was using, and he got angry when a flight attendant suggested using another restroom. He returned to his seat and ordered alcohol from the flight attendant, who told him they could not provide alcohol to prevent further inappropriate behavior.
Then Seksan Kumtong suddenly started swearing and shouting threats at the flight attendant. Another flight attendant ran over to calm him down, but Seksan Kumtong hit the face of the flight attendant, who told him they couldn’t give him alcohol, trying to knock her to the floor. The sudden behavior took aback the flight attendant, and his actions became even more severe. He even told the flight attendant, “I’m going to kill you.”
Because of this passenger, the plane had no choice but to make an emergency landing in Alaska. The police arrested Seksan Kumtong when he arrived in Alaska. A court gave him a five-year suspended sentence. The court also ordered him to pay for some of the costs incurred by the emergency landing, including the accommodation and in-flight meals of the other passengers on the same plane. The airline provided hotel vouchers and food to the other passengers due to the emergency landing.
As a result, Seksan Kumtong had to pay a compensation of approximately $46,000.
② Assault incident on American Airlines
In February 2021, an assault occurred on a plane departing from Dallas, Texas, to Los Angeles. A 32-year-old American woman named Pichardo, who was in first class, not only swore at other passengers and flight attendants but also resorted to violence. She assaulted a passenger and made racially discriminatory comments towards another passenger, trying to stop her. She even spat at a male passenger who was recording the situation.
Pichardo’s rampage escalated, and the plane ultimately had to make an emergency landing at Phoenix Airport in Arizona to remove her. Pichardo was ordered to pay approximately $11,000 to American Airlines and received a probation sentence for three years after her release.
In November of last year, another assault incident occurred on American Airlines. A 37-year-old passenger departing from Mexico to Los Angeles International Airport caused a commotion, saying, “There are 10 murderers on the plane.” He suddenly moved to a first-class seat and started shouting. When the flight attendant tried to stop him, he chased after the flight attendant and hit her on the head.
Other passengers restrained him, and the FBI arrested him as soon as the plane landed.
American Airlines banned this passenger from using their planes. The airline stated, “We cannot tolerate acts of violence against our crew and will cooperate closely with law enforcement agencies.” If convicted, this passenger could face up to 20 years in prison.
③ A passenger who slapped a flight attendant and bullied her
There have been incidents in South Korea where flight attendants were assaulted. However, the lenient punishments have sparked controversy. In September 2019, a woman in her twenties slapped a flight attendant on the plane. The woman had asked for red wine but assaulted the flight attendant when she brought white wine instead.
She was charged without detention for allegedly slapping the right side of the victim’s face once and was sentenced to eight months in prison. It turns out that the perpetrator had a previous record of being convicted in jail for violating the Aviation Security Act and obstructing public duties. She also failed to appear in court on the day of sentencing and was arrested.
There was also an incident on Philippine airline Cebu Pacific where a passenger slapped a flight attendant. At the time, the passenger asked the flight attendant to put her luggage away, and the flight attendant helped the passenger. However, the passenger slapped the flight attendant, claiming that the flight attendant did not allow her to put away her luggage. Cebu Pacific permanently removed this passenger from its list and announced plans to sue. In the Philippines, assaulting a flight attendant can lead to a maximum fine of about $10,000 or a three-year prison sentence.
By. Seo Sung-min (fv_editor@fastviewkorea.com)
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