Kicked Off The Plane? Really?

In this era of "fake news" I read an article on several seemingly ludicrous ways some people have been removed from their flights. The reporting of the incidents is sort of a he-said-she-said kind of thing and I think a lot of it stems from over reacting by passengers and crew alike but here are a few I found interesting.

I remember hearing about the birthday cake incident. A cake in the box carried by a family as they were preparing to celebrate a birthday at their destination created a dilemma of where to put it. It was first put in the overhead bin but then the crew decided it should go under the seat in front of them. According to the family it was the disagreement between crew members of where the cake should ride that led them to become upset and therefore required to leave the plane.

Saggy pants and showing cleavage can also lead to removal apparently. In one incident a singer from a group called Green Day was asked to pull up his pants which led to his getting removed and in another incident a football player was kicked off the plane and arrested when his pajama bottoms were said to be showing too much underwear. Butt cracks aside, cleavage creates a problem as well. When a Florida woman was asked to cover up, it led to a disagreement and eventually ejection. The crew claimed she was intoxicated.

The one I had to shake my head over though was a report that a man who is a prize winning Ivy League economist was scribbling indecipherable notes on a notepad. The passenger in the next seat felt uncomfortable about that and reported him to the crew. He was asked to leave the plane and was then questioned. Eventually it was revealed that the scribblings were actually math equations and he was allowed to continue on the flight that was now delayed.

So believe it or not, there is probably more than one side to a lot of these stories. But just in case, I'll be sure to wear my pants at the waist and button up the blouse as well as do my writing at home. The birthday cake can get purchased at my destination.