A South African TV boss has been accused of being drunk after he was caught on camera reportedly throwing abuse and a drink over an air stewardess while on board a flight on Boxing Day.
Phone footage from inside the cabin of the FlySafair flight from Durban to Cape Town shows the passenger arguing furiously with the hostess. As she approaches the female telly executive with plastic tie hand restraints, the passenger throws her carton of drink into the airline worker’s face screaming: “You can’t do that!”
The mid-air bust up began when flight crew refused to serve the passenger, identified as South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC) Brand Manager Nobuntu ‘Nobs’ Mkhize, any more alcohol. The SABC is South Africa’s national high prestige equivalent of the BBC.
Ms Mkhize is heard calling the stewardess a “menial” as she struggles angrily against being restrained. Other passengers, apparently fed up with the row, pile in to help restrain her while others jeer at the angry traveller, one calling her “trailer park trash”. She only lets up her tirade when police board the plane in Cape Town and escort her off the aircraft.
Ms Mkhize, daughter of the late veteran journalist, Khaba Mkhize, claimed that she was being mistreated because of her race. Local media reports that later she denied being drunk and said she planned to sue the airline. But FlySafair spokesperson Kirby Gorden said: “We condemn any behaviour of this nature. Flight attendants have a primary duty as safety officers and interfering with their duties is a criminal offence. This passenger will be placed on our no-fly list and will not be welcome on future FlySafair flights.”
The South African Civil Aviation Authority (SACAA) has slammed Ms Mkhize’s behaviour and further commended the efforts by the flight crew to regain control of the situation. Director of Civil Aviation, Poppy Khoza, said: It must be noted that cabin crew members are licensed as safety officers under the Civil Aviation Regulations. Their primary duty therefore is to ensure safety protocols are always maintained as well as the comfort of passengers.
“Unruly behaviour, nuisance, disorderly or indecent acts on board any aircraft endangers the safety of both the aircraft and its occupants, and this cannot be tolerated. We want to discourage any act that undermines safety of crew and passengers and call on all passengers travelling on any flight to observe and obey the instructions of the crew. South Africa carries a sterling record in air safety and this is the record that cannot be undermined by any individual.”
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