PM is, presumably, Delta's "Platinum Medallion" FF level. There are silver, gold, platinum and diamond levels.

Thank you, uszkanni.

1985, my first TATL flight -- MIA-MAD -- five drunk German men in coach were too rowdy for the FA to quiet them. She called the captain, who said they'd be removed if they didn't settle down. They did so, briefly, but by the time the plane was ready to push back, they were loud again -- not like earlier, but annoyingly so. After a long wait, during which the captain said we were waiting to resolve an issue (never described), an incredible swarm of uniformed people entered the back of the plane and the five drunk guys were gone.

Never seen it happen since, but there were a few I would like to have seen removed.

I've never seen anyone actually removed from a flight but my wife was on a TPAC on which someone died. The guy was wheeled out on a gurney so, technically speaking, I guess she could say that she saw someone "removed" from a plane.

Fortunately for my wife (who truly believes in ghosts) they didn't move the guy to the front of the plane, they just partially covered him with a blanket as if he were sleeping - which, in a sense, I guess he was.

Only in the USA.

I understand why this is confusing, but not the poster's fault, since it was written before the thread was moved from the DL forum to travelbuzz.

i just pictured a weekend at bernies situtation when I read this story.

If you've ever boarded a flight in Israel, you would see why they rarely need to do personal searches. You must arrive hours before departure. Everyone on the flight is subject to intensive questioning, profiling, and a very personal interview. Your bag is x-rayed, tossed around, and you are asked to open it and report its contents. In other parts of the world, they don't take the time to perform that level of personal observation - body scans and searches are much quicker way to ascertain any security threats.

Um, was this response meant for another thread? It's not exactly relevant to drunk, unruly passengers getting kicked off the flight. :confused:

I was once on a flight out of MSP where the woman next to me started shrieking uncontrollably, that she was afraid to fly, and they taxied back to the gate to let her off.

So I took my wife and we rented a car and drove to Chicago and then took a train from there to get her to the hospital she was being transferred to.

(Nope, not kidding.)

Was the person sitting next to you your wife or are you saying you went out of your way to assist a random person on the plane next to you?

I guess if you are drunk you would never make it through the Israeli security.

Actually, once at TLV there was a group of German tourists drinking while going through security, didn't seem to have a problem :)

If you are not drunk enough to go through the security protocol then I don't think you are going to be a problem on board.

I was flying ATL-HOU. There was a passenger who was sick and threw up in the gate area. Upon boarding, he was seated behind me and was sweating profusely. He upchucked while the plane was still boarding. I was repulsed and the FA reported this to the GA. The GA asked the man to leave the plane.