Man Delays Flight For Hours After Demanding That His Toddler Be Given A Free First-Class Seat
Over 300 passengers were forced to rebook their flight after the man's tirade.
Irina Wilhauk / Shutterstock Over 300 passengers were forced to rebook their flights after an angry man spent three hours arguing with the flight crew over a disagreement regarding his first-class ticket purchase.
The man believed that he was entitled to an additional seat despite only paying for two.
The unruly passenger claimed that since he purchased two first-class seats, he was entitled to a free third one for his toddler.
The incident took place on December 30, 2023, on a flight from Beijing to Chengdu in the southwestern province of Sichuan, China, per The South China Morning Post.
After boarding the plane, the man brought his toddler, who was originally seated in economy, up into his seat in first class despite not purchasing a seat for the child.
When the man was approached by the flight crew, he claimed that he was entitled to an additional free first-class seat since he had booked two already.
When the flight crew members informed the man that he would not receive an upgrade just for purchasing two first-class seats, a heated argument started between the two sides.
The unidentified man’s unruly tantrum was recorded by fellow passengers, who began to grow irritated as the man continued to delay their flight.
“Stop swearing at me. You have no right to do that,” the man could be heard telling the flight staff.
When another passenger attempted to point out the airline’s first-class policy to the man, he became furious and turned on him.
“What gives you the right to order me about?” the man yelled.
Passengers pleaded with him to just cooperate so that they could take off.
“You’ve wasted too much of our time, and we won’t tolerate it any longer,” a woman could be heard telling the man.
Eventually, security had to be called to the scene.
After three hours of the man insisting that he was entitled to a free first-class seat for his toddler, he was finally escorted off the plane.
However, it was too late for the rest of the airline passengers, most of whom were forced to rebook their flights to get to their destination.
The man’s uncalled-for reaction had people besides his fellow passengers angry with him.
“People like this should be banned from flying,” one X (formerly known as Twitter) user suggested.
“The parents are rich but cheap at the same time. They have probably done this before and got away with it,” another user commented.
Others believed that the situation should have been handled in a more timely manner to avoid the delay of other passengers.
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“After five minutes he should’ve been escorted off,” one X user wrote.
“It shouldn’t take three hours to get an unruly passenger off the plane,” another user noted.
Despite the man’s claims, most airline companies do not allow passengers who buy a certain number of first-class tickets an additional free seat.
In the U.S., passengers who cause disturbances on flights similar to the man in the video can face fines of up to $37,000 per incident as well as criminal prosecution.
If the incident is severe enough, they may even be added to a no-fly list.
While the man was entitled to feel frustrated over the situation, he had no right to inconvenience his fellow passengers with his tantrum.
While flying, it is important to remember that things may not always go your way, and hiccups are inevitable.
However, you are not the only passenger flying, and you must be considerate of your fellow fliers.
Megan Quinn is a writer at YourTango who covers entertainment and news, self, love, and relationships.