It hasn't been a very good few weeks for airlines or their passengers. First, United garnered international headlines for all the wrong reasons when officers were captured on video forcibly removing Dr. David Dao from his seat for "overbooking." And now, Delta is part of a video which has surfaced showing a man being kicked off his flight for using the restroom of all things.
This video, however, is being debated much more than the United Airlines one because this passenger was not physically kicked off the flight and the public has differing opinions about whether or not he should have been asked to get off the plane.
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Everyone who flies knows that there are times when the pilot announces that all passengers must stay seated and those out of their seats must return to them for the safety of everyone on the plane. But what should happen when a plane is stuck on a tarmac for hours and a passenger has a bathroom emergency? That's exactly what happened to Kima Hamilton of Milwaukee, on April 18 and his fate was being kicked off the flight.
Hamilton explained that he tried to use the lavatory at one point while waiting on the tarmac in Atlanta but was told he could not. He returned to his seat, however, 30 minutes later he said that he absolutely had go and rushed to use the plane's bathroom as quickly as he could.
“The pilot came on and said, ‘Ladies and gentlemen, I’m sorry for the inconvenience but we have to return to the gate and remove a passenger,'” Hamilton told Milwaukee’s Journal Sentinel. “It escalated to that point that fast.”
A Delta employee approached Hamilton and asked him to get off the plane. Hamilton did not and instead tried to apologize and state his case before giving up his seat.
In light of the recent United Airlines event, fellow passengers pulled out their cell phones to capture every moment.
“I’m not really clear on why I’m being asked to leave this plane. I purchased this ticket, I had an emergency. I had to pee,” Hamilton can be heard saying in the clip. “I tried to hold it the first time and you said I absolutely couldn’t and I’m being kicked off the plane?”
Eventually another airline employee heard Hamiliton out, but in the end he was still asked to leave the aircraft.
The 39-year-old said that had to buy a ticket via Southwest Airlines which cost him more since it was on such short notice as he had to get back to his home in Milwaukee to chaperone a trip with 4th and 6th graders.
Delta released the following statement regarding the matter on Wednesday, April 26.
“Our flight crews are extensively trained to ensure the safety and security of all customers. It is imperative that passengers comply with crew instructions during all phases of flight, especially at the critical points of takeoff and landing,”