Cathay Pacific has banned a couple from ever boarding one of its flights after they argued with another passenger about a reclined seat.
A woman took to social media to share that whilst onboard a flight from Hong Kong to London on the 17th September she reclined her seat which sparked an argument with the couple behind her.
The woman explained in her video on social media platform Xiaohongshu that the couple asked her to straighten her seat because they were unable to see their in-flight TV and once she refused, they expressed their anger by shouting at her, slapping her arm and showing her the middle finger. They also pushed the back of her seat.
The video details the extent of the argument and insults to the woman can be heard in both English and Cantonese.
A cabin crew member tried to diffuse the situation by asking for the seat to be straightened but this request was refused – “I was shocked because it was not meal time, yet the flight attendant wanted me to compromise,” she said in the video, “I rejected the suggestion.”
The behaviour of the couple was heavily scrutinised on social media and in the comments with one person saying, “If they want more space, they should have paid for first-class seats.”
On the other side of the fence, some commenters criticised the decision of the airline to ban the couple, expressing that reclining seats is inconvenient to others.
After the video went viral, Cathay Pacific confirmed that the couple have been added to their no-fly list due to their “strict zero-tolerance policy” to any passengers who are disruptive to others.
(Image Credit: Shutterstock)