Customer satisfaction at popular airlines has been tanking in the last few months, and it's not just about airlines like Air Canada and Delta being short-staffed. It's more so about how customers have felt short-changed by the airlines they booked with.
While many flights have been canceled lately, with no option for rescheduling or refund, a person recently almost missed out on their flight because of a mistake the flight attendants made.
Jacqueline Nguyen, or @jacqueline.ngu on TikTok, who uses they/them pronouns, had already boarded their flight with Spirit Airlines and settled into their seat when they were approached by a complaint-resolution official who asked them to step off of the airplane.
Once they were on the jet bridge, Nguyen realized the flight staff were accusing them of having Monkeypox.
"I think the exact thing they asked was, 'How long have you had that rash?' or 'I need to ask you about that rash.'"
"I realized what was happening and what they thought. I tried to explain that this was just my eczema, that I've had it my whole life, and that it's not contagious."
Stressed, Nguyen began to cry. In response, the conflict-resolution official demanded they produce medical documentation to prove that they were experiencing an eczema flare-up. Nguyen explained that they did not have documentation on-hand, but they did have prescription eczema dermatological cream.
You can watch the video here:
While they were able to board the plane because of their medical cream, Nguyen was worried that everyone on the flight would think that they were a risk and "diseased."
In a later video, Nguyen explained how the flight attendants only made them feel worse about it.
Upon reboarding the plane, Nguyen came into contact with the flight attendant who originally drew attention to her eczema and reported her to the conflict-resolution official who asked her to step off of the plane.
In a text overlay, Nguyen wrote:
"We were able to board the flight again after I presented a tube of my prescribed eczema cream."
"My wife called out the conflict-resolution official on being discriminatory, for which she was told there was 'no need for an attitude.'"
"As we walked down the plane aisle again, the flight attendant [from before] was walking down the aisle, and when she saw me, she promptly turned around and walked the other way, not even looking at me, as if eye contact would spread it."
"This has happened to other people who were not so lucky as to have anything with them as 'proof'."
"I want to say that I understand there being precautions, but when these precautions are based in ignorance, it turns to prejudice."
You can watch the video here:
TikTok was furious on Nguyen's behalf
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Some were also afraid of this happening to them, too, because of their own appearances.
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In a third video, Nguyen shared the side-effects of posting their initial video.
Spirit Airlines didn't reach out to Nguyen to apologize or to otherwise make the situation better.
What they did do was fire Nguyen's wife the day after the first video was posted. They were certain it was either because Nguyen shared the videos on social media, or because their wife accused them of being "discriminatory" while talking on the jet bridge.
They did not otherwise indicate if they would pursue legal action.
Hopefully, more positive side effects would come of sharing the videos, in addition to Nguyen's original home of spreading awareness of dermatological issues in the face of the spread of Monkeypox.
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