After 9/11, the cockpit gets blocked off when the door is opened. A pilot goes to the lavatory, and no one can approach the front of the aircraft. That makes sense, but the flipside is that this should be reserved only for the pilot’s important needs. Here, a Southwest Airlines pilot flying from Dallas Love Field to Los Angeles reportedly spends a part of the flight chatting up a flight attendant, while passengers are forced to wait to use the lavatory. That seems like bad judgment to me – and actually illegal!
@SouthwestAir fly attendant sent elderly woman in row 6 to the lavatory in the back so the pilot could continue to just yuck it up with her. No one in the lavatory. They talked for a good 10 mins. Awful flt 3756 pic.twitter.com/WDTksOCrea
— Jeffrey F (@jeffreyfields) December 1, 2024
Federal Aviation Regulation 121.543 requires pilots to be in the cockpit at all times except:
- “Necessary for performance of duties” to check something in the aircraft
- “In connection with physiological needs” using the lav
- Crew rest, when another pilot takes their place
There’s no time limit on these exceptions. Was flirting a “physiological need” – perhaps!
Several years ago on an American Airlines flight from Washington National to Dallas-Fort Worth my flight’s captain spent 20 minutes in the galley flirting as part of his lavatory trip.
This came right after the meal service, and passengers up front were visibly squirming in their seats, while a service cart in the aisle in coach meant it wasn’t possible for passengers to go to the lavatories in back either.
My view is that a few pleasantries as part of a bathroom trip is fine, but that a pilot shouldn’t be out of the cockpit for 10 – 20 minutes on non-bathroom business while they’re on duty.
I’m all for Southwest Bashing, but please, someone, put a stopwatch on Gary’s bathroom breaks, unless that is where he writes posts like this while others wait….
The worst part is that if anyone had actually spoken up (as in talking directly to the pulot or lD/A they would have probably been black listed/arrested on arrival.
The stupidity of current regulations in the USA in particular nees to be looked at
Are you guys nuts? Half of yall as passengers can’t even stay in your seat for 2 minutes, walking through cabin while seatbelt signs on, sometimes in significant turbulence etc and you expect the pilots to sit in a confined flight deck for hours on end without getting up to stretch their legs. I mean God forbid they spend 5 even 10 minutes having a conversation while they are up! Do you all have jobs?!?!? Do you sit at your desk for 5 hours straight without getting up or taking a break, or speaking to anyone else? You all are absolutely RIDICULOUS! There is more than one bathroom in the plane
WALK TO THE BACK! So small minded to think “flirting” is what the conversation is about. Is that what yall do with your coworkers when you het up from your mundane desk jobs to speak with others? I’m sure there are a myriad of topics they talk about besides “flirting”
The fact that so many are throwing out negative comments but not one can relate the content of the conversation between the Captain and F/A speaks volumes for the credibility of those complaining!
Southwest is a peasant airline for peasant passengers. I’m not surprised they scrape the bottom of the barrel when it comes to flight crew. If you don’t like the service you get in cattle class, perhaps don’t fly Cattle Airlines then.