An American Airlines passenger is suing another passenger that says she attacked him.
They were flying American flight 2552 from Charlotte to Memphis on November 16, 2024. The woman seated behind him began acting erratically as the aircraft started its descent, he alleged in his lawsuit, and:
- She stuck her legs and feet into the space between his seat and the adjacent passenger’s seat.
- The other passenger complained to a flight attendant, who told her to remove her feet, fasten her seatbelt, and put her seat upright and locked for landing.
- She initially complied. But after the flight attendant left, she stood up, lunged over his seat, and struck him on the side of the head with a full weight body blow.
- His head hit the aircraft sidewall. He may have gone unconscious. His glasses were knocked off, and when he bent down to retrieve them, she tried to continue the attack.
Eventually flight attendants subdued the woman. She kept swearing at and threatening, though, and continued even after landing in Memphis where law enforcement responded.
The victim filed a federal civil lawsuit in the Western District of Tennessee on May 22, 2025, alleging battery, negligence, and gross negligence. He only sued the passenger, not the airline.. That is unusual – normally people go after the deep pocket, not the perpetrator. He’s seeking at least $75,000 in compensatory damages and $150,000 in punitive damages.
A parallel federal criminal case against the woman was filed. That led to the civil case being stayed. This is common:
- The plaintiff will want the criminal conviction to bolster their civil case
- The defendent won’t want a deposition in the civil case to be used against her at the criminal trial.
If the facts are as alleged in legal documents, this is fairly inexplicable – a mental break, perhaps, though she was described as possibly intoxicated. What I really like to see, though, is the attempt to hold the actual (alleged) perpetrator responsible for their action rather than the airline.
Classic VFTW content! “I must say, damn good stuff, Sir.” — Lieutenant Archie Hicox (played by Michael Fassbender) from the 2009 Quentin Tarantino film Inglourious Basterds.
“What I really like to see, though, is the attempt to hold the actual (alleged) perpetrator responsible for their action rather than the airline”. Well said, Gary !!!
God I hate our civil justice system. Something happens and people think they hit a payday. Get over it people. If you want justice deliver it yourself instead of looking for cash. Of course our society has gotten so weak no one wants to fight back or take care of themselves anymore – sad
@TexasTJ, @Retired Gambler, @George Romey, @George N Romey, @George Nathan Romey — I’m no fan of misbehavior, but, honestly, do you guys ever get tired of defending massive corporations on here? Like, surely, these companies actually can and need to enforce their own policies, but also, like, in many cases, they fail us, the consumer, all the time, and rarely do they face any real consequences. Maybe, hear me our, we should seek to hold major corporations accountable, instead of constantly punching-down on the little guy… (oh, I’m being told that’d be ‘communism.’ *facepalm*)
So in other words it’s the airline’s fault some lowlife nutjob attack another passenger inflight. I guess AA is supposed to give everyone a psych evaluation at the gate? This behavior continues because there’s no real punishment of people the act out on planes or at the airport. It’s always the bleeding heart liberals that glorify the thugs and criminals and have zero regard for victims.
One day soon sadly one of these lowlifes will take a plane down. Maybe then the criminal justice system will actually carry out justice. And @1990 will be telling us how dare we don’t feel sorry for the person that cause the death of 200 lives.
@George Nathan Romey — There he is… (all three names this time!)… defending corporate, at all costs. Welcome back, Mr. Concierge Key! (Did you see the whole condemning of those who misbehave? Naw, of course you conveniently ignore that… typical.)
@1990 – Hold AA accountable for what? They didn’t do anything.
There’s no point arguing with retards. He’s a broken record. Corporations, greed, orange man bad. Don’t waste your time with that pathetic mouth breather.
@Mantis
100% correct. Complete waste of time. Wash, rinse, repeat.
My off-the-cuff comment about starting a fightaware website is looking more and more attractive.
I agree with @1990 on a number of things here however not on this one.
I don’t believe AA is at fault here and the fact the victim is not suing AA as well IMO is the right choice.
But that’s the thing, AA should do something… no one expects to be attacked by anyone else on a flight. Airlines do have rules against such misbehavior. Enforce your rules.
@1990 – Well, unless the FAs have a crystal ball, I don’t know what they can do. Aside from subduing the individual once they act up, which is what they actually did.
There is also a pending federal indictment scheduled for trial on 4 August 2026.
“Good morning folks, Captain here. To better ‘enforce our rules,’ Fly‑Rite Airlines has installed a professional MMA fighter at every row. They’ll be monitoring behavior closely and neutralizing any passenger who forgets how to act like a human being.
Side effects may include zero cart service, no bathroom access, and mild intimidation—but rest assured, liability has never been lower. Sit back, relax, and try not to make eye contact.” Palm to forehead slap… Smh
@D Fray @Mantis – I have mostly been ignoring him lately. Doing so makes the entire VFTW experience MUCH better. I wish the comment interface for this blog was more modernized so I could block him completely, but here we are.
To all responding to another brainless rant by @1990 there is of course a solution to this for all airlines. Prison time, fines, and Do Not Fly Lists. But then you know his/her take on criminals. He/she believes what Newsom’s wife believes. They just had an “accident.” An “oopsy.”
Anyone fly Air China? They got a literal officer on every flight. They make a scary announcement in a deep voice before every flight after the safety video that basically they’re filming everything and will ‘re-educate’ you if you misbehave. Would that be better?
@D Fray — Bah! Dinner and a show!
@Mike Hunt — Oh, you can’t resist sometimes though…
@George Nathan Romey — Which “Newsom’s wife“… the one that Jr. had sent to Greece, or the current one? “THA BEST… IS YET… TO COME!!!” (That one?)
@Gary Leff — How many ‘fight on an airplane’ stories have you posted, like, in total (over 20+ years), and at what frequency? Like, is this category merely in your rotation for the site (it is, after all, great engagement bait), or does it really happen so often as to be a true systemic problem deserving of real solutions (bi-partisan legislation, greater enforcement, meaty fines, jail time, no-fly-lists, shooting offenders out of a canon, etc.)? Or is this just hype, because I’ve never once witnessed an officer-involved, Dr. Dao-style beat-down, and yet, if I believed everything you post, I should see it daily. So, what’s really going on here??
In the last statement, why “their action” and not “his action?” It’s singular, no? Or is it wokeism?
@Frank — Woke? Ohhh no!! Do you need a wah-mublence? Wee-woo… wee-woo…
I carry a piece of piano wire and two rings in my carry on. It has a way of disabling any troublemaker. Those of you who know will know. Those who don’t, don’t ask.
You forgot public caning and overseas prison colonies.
@Denver Refugee — Spicy!
The airline should assist the plaintiff in court.
@1990 – You just need attention, don’t you? And at all times of the day.
So, maybe the victim has integrity not suing the airline. It certainly isn’t their fault. But, if I were the victim, I’d hope they offered me miles/free flights (not that they owe me this).
@Mike “I wish the comment interface for this blog was more modernized so I could block him completely, but here we are.” Since I’ve been doing this awhile, I’ll report it becomes quite easy to skip over those posts. And, yes, the experience here is massively better.
@Frank — Thanks for providing it!
@This comes to mind — Based in Ohio… yet, travels annually in J to Europe and Down Under… mah man!
*stirs the pot*