Delta, Do You Really Care?
The airline is not what it used to be — not even close.
Ed Bastian, Chief Executive Officer Delta Airlines, A 20-year Delta veteran, has been a critical leader in Delta’s long-term strategy and champion of putting Delta’s shared values of honesty, integrity, respect, perseverance, and servant leadership at the core of every decision.
Interesting article to read; according to the details, Delta News Hub, he is the greatest thing since bubblegum. Will the officials a the airline please explain to me why would such a great man allow his Air Attendants/Stewardess to be aggressive and demoralizing with their passengers.
Here is a case in point; a friend of mine, who I will name Victoria for this article, was kicked off a Delta flight in Alabama by an unfriendly attendant, who I will call Christy. I will try to be fair in this article and give details about what my friend told me and others about the incident in question. Included will be questions we have all asked Victoria in regards to this unkindly service in the sky.
The late hour of the night wore heavily on Victoria. She had been in the southern region of the United States for a week taking care of a family member. Tonight, she was at the airport waiting for three hours for her flight. Those three hours she could have been at her parents’ house resing. Finally, somewhere after 11:00 P.M., Victoria boarded the plane. Granted, she was on the phone telling her sister that she was boarding the plane. Her sister informed her of the stability of her family member who had been ill. Now onboard, relieved, she was on her way home. The attendant who scanned the passengers as her pre-flight duties specifies she ensures all phones and laptops are powered off came by Victoria and asked; no told her to put away her phone. She, the flight attendant, showed no ill-will in her tone of voice, nor did she seem riled in any way.
My friend complied and told her sister that the flight attendant told her to put her phone away. “Good-bye.” (Sister asked her later, “Why did you hang up on me?”) I want to remind you this is in the late evening hours, Victoria was tired from stress during the week, worried about the next week, and she had two dogs in baggage with her. When asked if this was the time to have a battle of wills with the attendant? Victoria says, “There was no battle of wills at this moment, and all I wanted to do was go home.”
Then, out of nowhere, the stewardess came back, noticed Victoria was holding her phone and lashed out; “I told you to put up your phone.”
Technically, no she did not. She told Victoria to hang up, not put away.
Victoria responded; “Yes, I heard you, I had to get my bag.”
The attendant, within two steps, stalked to Victoria. She pointed her finger inches from her face and said, “You better do it, or I will make the Captain turn around and kick you off.”
Victoria was astounded, there was no reason for threats or aggressive action (putting a finger in her face); she was doing as the woman told her. Now, I want it to be known, Victoria is not one to start a confrontation, she will ask questions, make observations, and call you out, but she doesn’t have to raise her voice, make threats, and be a bitch. “I am placing my phone in my bag.”
Christy seemed at this point unreasonable, she told her, “Don’t talk back to me.” (or something very close to this effect) She hovered in Victoria’s face.
Victoria, being tired, and feeling her personal space invaded, asked the attendant Christy; “Why are you being a bitch?”
Christy retaliated, “You can be taken off this plane.” and then stormed off.
The passenger next to Victoria asked, “Did that really happen?”
“What did I do to make her so angry?”
“Nothing.” the passenger/witness answered.
Moments later, they noticed that the plane was turning around. No announcements were made-leaving everyone to wonder what was going on?
Then, seconds later, the captain announced that a passenger was being taken off the plane and the flight would continue momentarily.
The passenger next to Victoria asked, “Is this about you?”
“Surely not,” she said, confused by the abrupt turnaround.
The plane stops at the airport, a man came aboard and retrieved Victoria from her seat, and then escorted her off.
Calm but confused, tired, worried, and with two dogs in tow she wanted to break down and cry, regroup, and come back strong. She walked with the agent to the Security Office. She asked if she was to be placed on another flight, he said, “no,”
Victoria, her two dogs who were in the office with her, because she had live pets, the animals were taken off the plane with her and waited at the office with the security official. They all sat down in the office and sorted out the incident. The flight attendant told the captain that Victoria refused to wear her mask. Therefore, the flight had to be turned around and she had to deboard. Knowing this was a misunderstanding, and the attendant Christy over-reacted, Victoria asked. “What do I do now?”
She was to take a plane in the morning, they would allow her to board. They suggested a motel off the airport community and sent her on her way.
Now, it is past midnight, Victoria and her animals had to walk in the darkness to find lodging. When she found the motel, got her room, and settled for the night (now remember, her luggage is on the plane heading to CA.) she has no clean clothes, no toiletries, and no food. Her dogs are hungry, but it’s almost 1:30 A.M. and she has no car to get find food. In her distress, she gathered her pups, climbed into bed, and called her husband to inform him of the situation. She let him ‘vent’ and once he calmed down, they made plans for the next morning. He booked a flight for her on another airline. She finally got home in California in the early afternoon hours. Thank you, Jesus.
Now, this is my opinion, you can agree or not, but this trauma is due to an attendant’s maniacal ego getting bruised. Victoria is a forty-something, not a child, and the older Flight Attendant from Delta Airlines talked down to her as one. This entire situation could have been handled with the proper communication skills, a heaping helping of empathy, and some humility. Instead, Air Attendant Christy decides to be an Ogre and has the plane go back to the gate and have my friend taken off the plane.
My minimal research into Delta Airlines revealed many changes within the Delta realm of business, in part by CEO Bastian, which are potential charges against the corporation1. He has chosen to cut costs to the Maintenance Department; this cutback will make the planes more unsafe to travel. Keep in mind that these planes are one of the older fleets in the Airline Industry. There was an incident in which the airplane’s emergency escape ladder ripped off its hinges and then landed in a man’s backyard. (fortunately, this happened when the plane was taking off, thankfully not in flight.) Gratefully, God was with them and the owner of the property. 2. Engine failure in Salt Lake City 9/2020, 3. Smoke in the cockpit, 4. Smoke in Cabin, Austin Texas, 11/2020,
CEO Bastian, investors of the airline, Aviation lawmakers, and such; how many more incidents besides the thirty-seven 37 that are documented in the National Aviation Incident Report must occur before repair, replace and retirement of air vehicle will happen? Yes, these problem airplanes need constant safety and maintenance service, so get to it.
The Customer Service, which you call Servant Service-are you in the Middle Ages? is lacking for sure. A woman had the ‘f’ word on a cap, she was asked to take it off. Not sure why she had to take it off because it was not told to her, she did anyway. She was still taken off the plane. Why? supposedly, she was fighting with the attendant. Look, I agree that cursing is showing a lack of intelligence on my part or others who curse in public, but who are you to kick someone off the airline when they do as you ask? If you give direction, give a reason if they ask. (here’s what it sounds like.) “Ma’am, please, take off your hat.”
“Why?”
“The word on the hat is offensive to other passengers and children.”
Let it at that. If the passenger becomes belligerent, ask the co-pilot to assist in the decision making process.
Ladies and gentlemen, fly who you want to fly, but my friends Victoria and Bradley are no longer flying with Delta. I found out that they are, were Premier members of the airlines. I have never flown with Delta, and I will not due to the research, but mostly due to the horrible treatment my friends received from them.
Ed Bastian, shame on you and your colleagues’ decisions to make shortcuts in spending that compromise the safety of the passengers in which you claim is the influence of your business. Shame on you and your captains for allowing your flight attendants the authority to make decisions on who can be thrown off the plane without the captain questioning the passenger in the incident themselves. If this is normal practice; then Delta should not be a part of the industry.
