Drunk flyer given 11 drinks 'groped mum and daughter' on 'nightmare' flight
A man aboard a Delta Air Lines flight has been accused of groping a 16-year-old girl and her mother after downing at least 10 vodkas and a glass of wine.
During the nearly nine-hour flight from JFK Airport to Athens, Greece, flight attendants allegedly "blatantly ignored" the desperate pleas for help from the victims and continued to serve the intoxicated passenger, according to court papers filed on Tuesday in Brooklyn Federal Court obtained by The Post.
The lawsuit, filed by the family's lawyer - Evan Brustein - revealed the details of the July 26, 2022 flight. The family contends that the nightmare could have been entirely preventable had the airline staff taken appropriate action.
Flight staff allegedly served the man vodka even though he was noticeably drunk (Getty Images)During the flight, the drunken passenger reportedly frightened the teen by touching her back, making obscene gestures, and demanding personal information from her. He even declared that he didn't care about her being a minor. When the mother lodged a complaint, a flight attendant allegedly brushed her off, instructing her to "be patient."
The situation escalated further when the man allegedly vomited loudly in the airplane bathroom and returned with a glass of wine. Despite his disruptive behavior, the flight attendants allegedly failed to relocate him to another seat. Instead, they simply advised him to stop talking to the victims, which resulted in a profanity-laced outburst from the drunk flyer, the family lawyer claims.
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The 16-year-old victim says she then experienced a panic attack and sought refuge in her mother's lap. She then "felt the intoxicated Delta passenger’s clammy fingers underneath her shirt climbing up her back … fingering her bra strap and moving over her body,” according to the $2 million lawsuit.
The mother claims she tried to intervene, only to have the man reach over and touch her leg inappropriately as well.
Flight attendants reportedly ignored the mother and daughter's pleas for help (Getty Images/iStockphoto)The mother demanded that the flight attendants contact the police upon landing in Athens. However, her pleas were allegedly met with dismissive responses, telling her to "calm down and think about it." In an effort to distance themselves from the passenger, the victims switched seats for the remainder of the flight.
Upon arrival, the flight attendants reportedly offered a 5,000 free airline miles as an apology for the traumatic incident.
Delta Air Lines declined to comment on the ongoing lawsuit but emphasized that the company maintains a "zero-tolerance" policy for customers engaging in inappropriate or unlawful behavior.
The family is seeking $2 million in damages, holding both the passenger and Delta Air Lines accountable for the ordeal. A spokesperson for Delta told The Mirror: "While we don’t have any specific comment on this pending litigation, Delta has zero tolerance for customers who engage in inappropriate or unlawful behavior. Nothing is more important than the safety of our customers and our people.”
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