Dad kicked off Jetstar flight for breaking cardinal rule
A dad has been kicked off a Jetstar flight after snapping a picture of his family boarding the plane from the tarmac.
Jimmy Mitchell was with his wife Pauline and their two children as they went to board their flight from Sydney to Brisbane, where they were embarking on a cruise.
As the family were boarding the plane from the tarmac, Jimmy quickly took a picture of his kids and his wife who were walking up the rear stairs of the plane.
According to Jimmy, who is a seasoned traveller, he didn't hear an announcement be made that passengers were prohibited from taking photos on the tarmac because the plane was refuelling.
He was eventually able to board the flight after being confronted by cabin crew, but described the debacle as “one of the most traumatic experiences” he’s had.
In a viral TikTok, he alleged that while he was taking the photo, a cabin crew member called him an “idiot”. He said that when she tried to get his attention to put the device away it left him embarrassed and shocked.
“This is the worst experience I’ve ever had flying,” he said in the clip.
“I try and get on the plane, I take a photo of my kids as they get on the plane, in flight mode, and the lady calls me an idiot,” he said.
After he confronted the staff member, Mr Mitchell claims he was told he won’t be allowed to board the flight.
“I turned around in disbelief because I was half way up the stairs at this point. I basically stormed over to her and I was like, ‘Are you serious? What did you just call me?’
“She was basically saying ‘you can’t take photos on the tarmac, you can’t take photos on the tarmac’.”
The pair allegedly went back and forth before the father-of-two, known for his travel content, was rejected from boarding the plane.
“If she had literally just said anything else, like ‘get off your phone’, I would have done it.”
“Apparently, they made an announcement, but I had noise cancelling headphones, Pauline (wife) told me after the fact – I didn’t hear it, there was no notifications about it, there was no signage, no nothing."
“All she had to do was say something constructive. ‘Get off your phone,’ ‘you can’t have your phone out’ and I would have been like ‘sorry’, but she screams across the tarmac calling me an idiot.”
“I can see how she maybe felt I was being intimidating because I am a big guy and I am a loud guy. She turns around to me and goes ‘you almost assaulted me, get off the tarmac, you’re not getting on this plane’.”
Mr Mitchell then walked back inside the terminal where he awaited further instructions, and was later able to board the flight “after cooler heads prevailed” but wants the airline to apologise to him and his family over the “stressful” situation.
“The way they treated Pauline and the kids and not allowing me to communicate with them what was going on, was completely unacceptable,” he said.
The debacle has sparked a huge debate on his TikTok and Instagram over who is in the wrong.
“Wow … that’s insane! So sorry that happened to you!” one person wrote.
“Take it further and don’t let them get away with what they have done,” a second person said.
However, others were quick to comment that as a seasoned traveller, Jimmy should've been well versed in the rules of not taking photos on the tarmac.
Image credits: TikTok