American Airlines and its flight attendants' unruly behavior toward a passenger has caused backlash. An Argentinean woman was harassed on April 21 by a flight attendant who attacked her with a baby stroller. The woman will now be represented by a lawyer. Her lawyer (Thomas Demetrio) also represented the doctor who was dragged from a United Airlines flight recently.
What transpired aboard American Airlines?
The woman (who was traveling from San Francisco to Dallas, accompanied by her two children) was ill-treated by one of the male attendants of the flight.
A school teacher by profession, the woman was hit by the baby stroller when the flight attendant tried to aggressively take it away from her. A video from a fellow passenger – which soon went viral – showed the woman crying.
Seeing the situation and the callousness of the airline, a male passenger decided to take a stand and confront the crew. The video was captured much later. The situation worsened when a male flight attendant boarded the flight. Both the attendant and the man engaged in a verbal battle. The attendant was aggressive and even said “hit me.” The situation worsened and the two men had to be separated by the flight crew.
What the lawyer says
According to Demetrio, the video reflects the problems within American Airlines.
The legal counsel for the victim expressed his views on the incident. According to the lawyer, the video clearly shows the scene inside the airline. It can be seen that the captain is both calm and concerned about the situation. He also cited a close similarity between the April 9 incident where Dr. Dao was brutally dragged from a flight with a bleeding nose and other injuries.
Thomas stated that the airline has to work a lot on their behavioral attitude toward passengers. They have to treat passengers with respect and patience. Thomas also shared that until now United Airlines has not opted for any settlement discussion in regard to his previous client, Dr. Dao.
American Airlines suspended the attendant after the incident.
One of the passengers on the flight stated that she witnessed the male attendant aggressively taking the stroller away from the woman. Currently, American Airlines is investigating the incident. According to the airlines' policies, nobody is allowed to board a flight with a stroller. It remains to be seen if the airline will offer the victim any compensation.
