An innocent photo taken by a tourist in the cabin of the plane became the reason for a dispute between the passenger and the employees of the airline. The man was severely detained and was not allowed to leave the salon until he showed them the contents of his phone.
Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren from Seattle, USA traveled with American Airlines last week. At one point, he took a picture of the interior of the plane. However, this did not sit well with the crew members.
“Frequently asked the question: Can a crew member physically prevent me from leaving the plane until I show them the contents of my phone? They wanted to see the last 3 photos) to make sure I didn’t take a photo with them in it,” he asked other tourists on social media and added that he had practically left the plane after landing when the flight attendant asked the captain to prevent him from going down the gangway further, to return the passenger to the cabin, at the same time she managed to forcefully snatch the phone from the passenger’s hands.
Outraged by the actions of the airline’s employees, the traveler later said that American Airlines representatives contacted him to apologize, noting that the crew was indeed not allowed to touch his phone.
As it turned out, such behavior of flight attendants happens quite often. This was told by tourists who, in response to the outrageous story of the Americans, told similar stories from their lives. “I had the crew insist that I delete the photos, but it was during the flight. I just photographed the salon and nothing more,” said one of them.
In addition, there was an incident in 2013 that tourists still remember today. Then frequent flyer and blogger Matthew Clint kicked off a United Airlines flight after taking a picture of his seat.
Note that the rules for the use of photographs mainly apply to American airlines, but they may also apply to Ukrainians. American Airlines in-flight magazine, according to The Sun, states: “The use of small cameras or mobile devices for photography is permitted on board, provided the purpose is to capture personal events. Any photography or recording of other customers or airline personnel that poses a safety or security threat or interferes with the performance of crew members’ duties is prohibited.”
Russians are advised to check before taking any photos or videos on any air carrier’s aircraft that may have other passengers or crew members on board to avoid image infringement and other infringing and security charges.