A Delta Air Lines pilot has been praised for his only rule with passengers: be respectful.
In a viral video shared on Instagram, a pilot was seen making an announcement to Delta passengers during a delayed flight to Atlanta, Georgia. He introduced himself over the loudspeaker as “servant leader” and “captain of the ship.”
“I am responsible for the safety of my ship, my crew, my passengers, my cargo. But, above all, the rules,” she announced. The pilot instructed passengers to “obey the orders and instructions of my flight attendants” before offering his final rule.
“Lastly, I ask that we all be respectful of each other,” he said.
The video was posted on Instagram by the popular account @aflyguytravels, where it received thousands of likes. “Are you going to take a flight or go to war?” they wrote about the video, along with the caption: “I wonder if this Delta captain is ex-military.”
Since then, Delta's simple pilot etiquette rules have been praised online by fellow travelers and flight attendants alike. In the comments, many people wondered if the pilot had any military background due to his pre-flight guidelines. Others praised him for encouraging passengers to “be respectful” of each other, considering the number of crazy travel stories that have gone viral in recent years.
“I wish airline captains did this more often! It IS necessary, especially in these times,” wrote one Instagram user.
“Thank you Captain! I love it!! I wish more captains did this!” said another person. “Show your care, responsibility and authority!!”
A third said: “Love this! All drivers should do the same.”
More recently, a Delta flight was forced to turn around an hour after takeoff when worms from the overhead bin fell on passengers. On February 13, a flight carrying passengers from Amsterdam, Netherlands, to Detroit, Michigan, when a passenger's suitcase containing rotten fish was opened.
The worms landed on passengers sitting in economy seats and the plane was forced to turn around. Once the plane landed, all passengers were ordered to get off the plane and the suitcase containing the fish was placed in a bag to be destroyed. The plane itself was also thoroughly cleaned. As compensation, travelers were reported to have received 8,000 airline miles, hotel room compensation, and a $30 meal ticket if they were delayed overnight.
In a statement to The independent, a Delta Air Lines spokesperson said: “We apologize to customers of flight 133 AMS-DTW because their trip was interrupted due to improperly packed carry-on luggage. The plane returned to the gate and passengers were placed on the next available flight. “The aircraft was removed from service for cleaning.”
Earlier this month, a woman was almost kicked off a Delta flight for not wearing a bra. Lisa Archbold remembered Yahoo News Australia his interaction with an airline crew member before his flight from Salt Lake City to San Francisco. According to Archbold, the crew member made her get off the plane to reprimand her for her clothing and told her that what Archbold was wearing was an “offensive outfit” and “revealing.”
Although Archbold wore his jacket for the rest of the flight, upon exiting the plane he informed one of the male crew members how he felt about the situation, saying he felt it was “discrimination.”
“He responded verbatim: 'Our official policy at Delta Air Lines is that women must cover up.' It’s pretty disgusting,” he stated.
