asshole in 14c

[this is my first letter to a corporation that isn't a complaint or suggestion].

Dear Alaska Airlines,

I am writing this letter aboard Alaska Airlines 375 from San Jose to Seattle (departure 5:35pm on February 20, 2007). There is a man seated in 14C who is also writing a letter to Alaska Airlines as I can see it from where I’m seated in 15D. He is writing a letter of complaint and I am writing to defend the actions of the flight attendants on this flight. Our flight was delayed about 10 minutes prior to boarding and then we did not actually leave until 6:20pm. The second delay was caused by a woman in the 24th row having medical issues. I overheard the flight attendants mentioning that the passenger was dizzy and having a hard time catching her breath and they had a medic checking on her to see if she was okay to fly. After a short delay the lady was escorted from the plane and the flight attendants apologized for the delay and let us know that they were tending to the safety and well being of one of the passengers. No one else on the plane seemed to have a problem with this delay.

During the delay the man in 14C was complaining loudly that Alaska is never on time anymore and that he spent 1.5 hours waiting on the tarmac aboard an Alaska flight yesterday morning. It was obvious he was speaking in a loud volume in an attempt to garner support from nearby passengers but I think most people, like me, were just getting annoyed with his loud incessant complaining. While the fight attendant apologized for the delay due to the medical issue, he continued with comments like, “whatever, we’re going to get there at what time now? We were supposed to land at 7:38.” As we prepared to take off a flight attendant asked him to turn off his MP3 player and he scoffed at her, rolled his eyes dramatically, and gestured as though it was unnecessary, then turned it off. As she walked away, he said loudly, “last thing we need on Alaska now is bitchy flight attendants.” The flight attendant (blond woman) came back and said to him, “this is your last warning, or you’re going to the gate and getting off.” After another round of dramatic gesturing as though he had done no wrong, he finally shut up.

On a second check through the cabin before take off a flight attendant asked him to bring his seat all the way up for take off and leaned over to push the button and get his seat back up. The man got all flustered again and as the flight attendant walked away this time, he said loudly, “what a bitch!” I’m not sure if the flight attendant heard but by that time the plane was starting to pull away from the gate and I think everyone just wanted to get to Seattle with no further delays.

His behavior, tone of voice, and body language were unnecessarily rude, obnoxious, and hostile. People have medical problems and I think the staff onboard took the right precautions in making sure the passenger was safe to fly. That, of course, takes time but no one else on board seemed to have a problem with a delay that you cannot fault an airline for. And calling the flight attendants bitches is absolutely uncalled for.

I too get frustrated with airline delays but I have to come to the defense of the airline for once. That man’s behavior was despicable and I hope you take my perspective into account when you review his letter of complaint (it’s a long one). The flight attendants did no wrong (in fact they were fantastic) and do not deserve any disciplinary action whatsoever.

Sincerely, Vanessa Au