Flight attendant union wants to bar pro-Trump rioters from flying home
The country’s largest flight attendant union wants to ground pro-Trump rioters to avoid in-flight turbulence ahead.
Just hours after a pro-Trump mob stormed the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday afternoon hoping to overturn the result of the 2020 election, the president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA) released a statement saying that participants of the violent demonstration should not be allowed to fly back home.
“The mob mentality behavior that took place on several flights to the D.C. area yesterday was unacceptable and threatened the safety and security of every single person onboard. It will not happen again,” Sara Nelson said.
“There’s a reason that there are strict penalties and fines for failing to comply with crewmember instructions. Enforcement keeps everyone safe,” she added.
Nelson’s comments came after at least two on-board incidents took place on flights to the U.S. capital ahead of Wednesday’s Stop The Steal rally.
In one of them, Republican Sen. Mitt Romney, of Utah, was aboard a Delta flight on Tuesday, when he was heckled by a group of Trump supporters who chanted “Traitor! Traitor! Traitor!” for about 20 seconds.
Delta’s crew “quickly engaged and resolved the issue,” the airline said.
AFA, which represents nearly 50,000 Flight Attendants at 17 airlines, said that “air travel is safe because everyone follows a strict set of rules.”
“Some of the people who traveled in our planes yesterday participated in the insurrection at the Capitol today. Their violent and seditious actions at the Capitol today create further concern about their departure from the DC area,”she added.
AFA is urging airlines and a number of transportation and security administrations, as well as law enforcement agencies, to “take all steps to ensure the safety and security of passengers and crew by keeping all problems on the ground.”
“Acts against our democracy, our government, and the freedom we claim as Americans must disqualify these individuals from the freedom of flight,” Nelson added.
