Cathay Pacific Takes Firm Stand on Passenger Conduct and Bans Couple Involved in Inflight Harassment

A viral video of a couple harassing a passenger over a reclined seat led to their permanent ban from Cathay Pacific, sparking debates about in-flight behavior.

By Thea Felicity

Sep 26 2024, 08:52 AM EDT

HONG KONG-CHINA-AVIATION-CATHAY — A Cathay Pacific staff talks to passengers at the international airport in Hong Kong on September 4, 2024. Hong Kong carrier Cathay Pacific has temporarily grounded its fleet of A350 aircraft for inspections after a "first of its type" engine component failure forced a flight to Zurich to turn back on September 3. PETER PARKS/AFP via Getty Images

Cathay Pacific will no longer allow a couple to fly on the airline after harassing other passengers during a flight.

As reported by CNBC, a couple was caught taunting a passenger and making "vulgar hand gestures" after she reclined her seat on a 14-hour flight from Hong Kong to London. The video went viral on China's Instagram, prompting social media users to rally against the Hong Kong-based airline.

Although the passenger returned her seat to the original position, she claimed the couple still harassed her.

The report stated that Cathay Pacific apologized for the incident and told CNBC that they have a "zero-tolerance policy" for behaviors that endanger or disrespect passenger rights.

Woman Harassed in Cathay Pacific Flight

However, the airline's actions turned out to be a contradiction to what happened during the flight after the woman revealed that she initially asked a flight attendant's help. She was told to "compromise" with the couple to avoid escalation.

She rejected the advice as the staff maintained their neutral position, failing to intervene. It took some time before she was eventually moved to another seat. One of the banned passengers referred to the woman reclining as a "mainlander" and bullied her verbally during the altercation.

According to the New York Post, Cathay Pacific claimed the staff gave the couple two severe verbal warnings. While not many agreed to their decision, banning them would discourage others from following in their "harassing" footsteps.

Now, recycling airplane seats is simply an act of comfort for a passenger. Unfortunately, due to shrinking seat pitches and limited armrest space, many people now list it in an "airplane etiquette" book. All passengers do not agree with this because seats are designed to recline for comfort purposes, as long as space and flight duration are considered.