After a woman was accused of shoving a flight attendant during a confrontation onboard a United Airlines flight to Chicago on Sunday morning, union leaders are pressing for federal action to increase punishments amid a surge in confrontations.
According to eyewitnesses, a woman was on a plane flying from San Francisco to Chicago when she stood up while the aircraft was beginning its landing procedures.
The woman allegedly yelled that her toddler “had to throw up,” and was told by flight attendants to sit down. She then allegedly shoved one of the flight attendants, and paced the aisle of the plane yelling for the remainder of the flight.
Chicago police were at the gate when the plane landed, and three people, one flight attendant, a woman and a 3-year-old, were taken to area hospitals for observation.
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United Airlines issued a statement following the incident.
“We are grateful for our crew for handling this difficult situation with professionalism,” the airline said. “They put the safety of the team and other passengers first.”
Corliss King serves as a vice president with the Transport Union Workers Local 556, a union representing more than 15,000 flight attendants nationwide. She says disturbances and assaults are at all-time highs, something that concerns her as the U.S. enters its busiest travel time of the year.
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“That small number of people that are insistent on behaving unruly, on behaving dangerously, represent a threat not just to flight crews but to our flying passengers as well,” she said.
King renewed her calls for Congress to pass the Abusive Passengers Act.
“Our flight attendants are the first line of defense, but we should also be protected,” she said. “So we are looking for the public, federal legislators and we’re looking for our carriers to band together to protect us. We are the most vulnerable.”
The law would implement a list of “abusive passengers” responsible for intimidating, threatening or assaulting airline workers, and any individual on the list would be prohibited from boarding commercial aircraft.
It is not clear whether charges will be filed in the case, and the FBI is assisting Chicago police with the investigation.
