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Man sues Jetblue for making him sit on toilet during flight
Think that your seat on the airplane is uncomfortable? It could be worse: you could have been Gokhan Mutlu, a New York man who just filed a lawsuit against Jetblue for making him sit on a toilet for more than three hours of his flight.Apparently, Mutlu, who was flying on a buddy pass ticket (a free fare), was the last person to get a seat on his recent journey. A flight attendant on a non-revenue ticket was also on the aircraft, but she gave up her real seat to sit in the jumpseat during the flight so that everyone could fit.
But when she got uncomfortable, the pilot came back and asked Mutlu to relinquish his seat, telling him literally to "go hang out" and directing him to the toilet. When he objected, court papers say that the pilot apparently said that "he was the pilot, that this was his plane, under his command [and] that [Mutlu] should be grateful for being on board".
After nearly three hours in the lavatory, a flight attendant returned to tell Mutlu that he could return to his seat, but at that point, my wager is that he was pretty ticked off. The lawsuit was filed for over two million dollars. Jetblue should be glad that he didn't sue for more.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Emma Leigh May 13th 2008 11:21AM
What a crappy way to treat a passenger! sorry, couldn't help myself...
paul May 13th 2008 1:49PM
The way airlines have acted since 9/11, it's amazing anyone flies anymore. Every time one of them goes out of business, I cheer and hope the remaining airlines will finally learn the importance of being polite and reasonable.
Jason May 13th 2008 8:14PM
His story sounds like somebody fishing for a settlement. He should be grateful that he even got a buddypass, come on, seriously $2 million?!? Everyone is trying to degrade and take advantage of the airline industry. The story I heard was that the guy was nice enough to let a jumpseating flight attendant use his seat and she fell asleep. By regulations, he couldn't use her jumpseat, and he was too timid to wake her up and ask for his seat back so he decided to sit on toilet. This man should be ashamed and I feel sorry for the poor sap who gave him a buddypass.
Kevin May 13th 2008 8:26PM
My sister is a flight attendant with a different (and bigger) airline and she said it is quite unlikely that this happened the way this man says. First of all... Once the pilot is locked into the cockpit, he is not supposed to come out of the cockpit for any reason until the plan has safely landed. Also, the FAA has strict regulations regarding the availability of seat belts in case there is a problem or turbulence, I doubt the entire flight crew would jeopardize their jobs by allowing a passenger (flying free or not) to not have an available seat.
As for buddy passes... This is something that nearly all airlines have. My sister has given me a buddy pass on several occasions. I can tell you that flying standby isn't always pleasant, but it is nearly free (sometimes there are taxes).
As for Jet Blue, I had a chance to fly them last year and I was surprised by the amount of legroom... The tv's were pretty nice too... If only my sisters employer could take a clue.
Mary Jo May 13th 2008 11:21PM
I'm with Kevin - there's a whole lot of things about this story that don't add up.
As a Flight Attendant and frequent pass traveler, this just isn't the way it happens.
Christine gilbert May 14th 2008 8:46PM
I agree, somethings off here.
Also-- 2 MILLION DOLLARS? They didn't cut off one of his limbs, he got stuck in a bathroom for 3 hours...
Flygirl May 14th 2008 11:16PM
something is definitely fishy about this - I'm a
flight attendant & since 9/11 a pilot cannot leave the cockpit inflight, therefore he can't order anyone anywhere per se. What is also extremely strange is why the flight attendant wanted a passenger
seat versus her own jump seat - was she on duty or commuting? There's just so many unanswered questions here. I also feel sorry for the employee that gave this guy the buddy pass, because an airline worker can lose their flying benefits if a passenger flying on their pass cause any kind of flight disruptions - so suing the airline probably won't go over so well - And for 2million bucks, WOW! He'll never get another buddy pass - Can't wait to hear the outcome of this...