Delta pilot captured on camera hitting woman passenger
Amid rising sentiment against airlines' insensitive handling of passengers, Delta Air Lines has come under fire after a pilot was captured on camera hitting a woman-passenger. He is seen attempting to separate three women fighting with each other, and grabs one by the arm and smacks her. He walks away as they keep fighting. The incident happened at Atlanta Airport purportedly on April 21.
Pilot suspended, later reinstated
The pilot was suspended pending investigation, but has returned to work as the company found his actions "deescalated an altercation between passengers on the jetway floor during deplaning". The incident happened less than a week after a Wisconsin man was removed from a Delta flight when he had to use the washroom during take-off; the airlines quoted "security concerns".
Rising cases of violence against passengers
Earlier this month, United Airlines grabbed headlines after they forcibly removed (and injured) a passenger from a flight, when he refused to "voluntarily" give up his seat to crew members. On April 21, a video onboard an American Airlines plane surfaced, where an employee is heard arguing with a crying woman carrying a baby, and then threatening another passenger who defended her.