Originally Posted by
chollie
I've read this a couple places, but I want to hear more before I make a judgment. I haven't seen a source yet that tells who broke this story in the news.
I'm not saying it couldn't happen, but I've never witnessed that kind of reaction before when the FA asked terminating people to hold back to let pax with a tight connection get off first, and frankly, if it was as bad as he claims, I'm surprised the FA's didn't tell people to calm down.
I sympathize with the parents' and their grief but I don't know how many other people on the plane knew their personal circumstances. They might want to keep in mind that the delays that were caused by waiting for them may have caused other people to miss very important connections.
I have, and have witnessed seat neighbors who I know (from overhearing them or seeing them in arrivals, etc) weren't on a tight connection or any connection, get right up to deplane despite the announcement.
I also was on a Devil's Chariot once when the captain announced that we had to wait for two LEOs/agents of some sort, I don't recall the specifics - who were seated at the far back - to deplane. There was whining and moaning about that despite the fact it only delayed the rest of us maybe a minute.
So while I wasn't there, it's certainly not something that couldn't happen and I could definitely envision it occurring IME. Society is much more self-centered and uncivil these days. I see people sometimes not stop for funeral processions or emergency vehicles, or younger folks not give up mass transit seats for the elderly, etc.
I also don't know why the family would fabricate or embellish such an incident.