A woman who was involved in the recent viral mid-air incident involving a Chinese passenger has come forward to explain her side of the story, saying she filmed the situation to protect herself and potentially report the incident later.
According to China Press, the woman, identified as You (transliteration), said in an interview that the incident took place about a week ago when she was among the last passengers to board the flight.
Was told that several passengers had yet to board
You recalled being told by cabin crew that several passengers had yet to board, even though it was already close to 2am.
I thought it was quite late and wondered why they hadn’t boarded yet, so I went back to my seat to rest,” she said.
She added that shortly after, the woman who later caused the commotion hurriedly took her seat.
“I assumed she was anxious because her friends hadn’t boarded yet,” You added.
Tried to remind woman to lower her voice
You said the woman immediately began making voice calls on WeChat, prompting her to politely ask her to keep her voice down.
“I spoke calmly and she responded with an ‘Okay’, so I went back to rest.”
However, things escalated during her second reminder, when the aircraft had already begun taxiing.
The volume was so loud that I couldn’t hear the captain’s announcement, so I asked her to stop the call immediately.
“She then scolded me, saying, ‘What’s wrong with me talking on the phone?! Even if I’m on a call, it will disconnect naturally during the flight!’”
Filmed incident for protection
You admitted that she took out her phone to record the woman, but said it was not meant to provoke her.
“I did think about whether it was right to film her, but since it was a public space, I did it in case I needed to report the incident or protect myself,” she explained.
You added that the woman became even more furious after noticing she was being filmed and demanded that the video be deleted.
Due to the woman’s aggressive behaviour, You said she did not have a chance to respond and was scolded continuously.
Cabin crew intervenes
The situation only de-escalated when a flight attendant who did not speak Mandarin stepped in.
However, the woman reportedly became dissatisfied and insisted on speaking in Mandarin.
A supervisor who could speak Mandarin later intervened and warned her to stop her behaviour or risk being removed from the flight.
She refused to accept it and said I should be the one getting off the plane,” You said.
The situation eventually led to the flight turning back, with authorities called in to handle the matter and escort the disruptive passenger off the aircraft.
