Posted on 05/13/2008 8:53:00 AM PDT by VRWCmember
A New York City man is suing JetBlue Airways Corp. for more than $2 million because he says a pilot made him give up his seat to a flight attendant and sit on the toilet for more than three hours on a flight from California.
Gokhan Mutlu, of Manhattan's Inwood section, says in court papers the pilot told him to "go 'hang out' in the bathroom" about 90 minutes into the San Diego to New York flight because the flight attendant complained that the "jump seat" she was assigned was uncomfortable, the lawsuit said.
Mutlu was traveling on a a "buddy pass," a standby travel voucher that JetBlue employees give to friends, from New York to San Diego on Feb. 16, and returned to New York on Feb. 23, the lawsuit said.
Initially, Mutlu was told a flight attendant had taken the last seat on the plane, but then he was advised she would sit in the employee "jump seat," meaning he could have the last seat, the lawsuit said.
The pilot told him 1 1/2 hours into the five-hour flight that he would have to relinquish the seat to the flight attendant, court papers say. But the pilot said that Mutlu could not sit in the jump seat because only JetBlue employees were permitted to sit there, the lawsuit said.
When Mutlu expressed reluctance to go sit in the bathroom, the pilot, who was not named in the lawsuit, told him that "he was the pilot, that this was his plane, under his command that (Mutlu) should be grateful for being on board," the lawsuit said.
When the aircraft hit turbulence and passengers were directed to return to their seats, but "the plaintiff had no seat to return to, sitting on a toilet stool with no seat belts," court papers say.
Some time later, a male flight attendant knocked on the restroom door and told Mutlu he could return to his original seat, court papers say.
Mutlu's lawsuit, filed Friday in Manhattan's state Supreme Court, says JetBlue negligently endangered him by not providing him with a seat with a safety belt or harness, in violation of federal law.
A JetBlue spokesman declined comment on the lawsuit Monday.
Did his legs fall asleep?
The solution is simply.
The FAA needs to mandate seat belts on the toilets in commercial airliners.
;^)
JetBlue’s new slogan: “When you’ve gotta go, fly JetBlue!”
This story seems so hard to believe - the smell test, doesn’t pass.
The story didn't say he passed anything -- in which case it definitely would have smelled.
Don't know, but you would think they would at least have upgraded him to the toilet in first class rather than the little dinky one at the back of the plane.
$2 million is a bit much. But forcing a passenger (even somebody flying non-rev) to sit on an unbelted toilet in a situation where the seat belt sign is on, that’s a big no-no. It sounds like a screwup that he was even booked into a seat on that flight, but once he was, seems to me the flight attendant should’ve stayed in the jump seat (isn’t that what they’re there for?).
}:-)4
Sorry sir, no XM sat. radio & sat. TV in your new seat...
Flew JB last year; this year in two diff. trips am
going Southwest (ding!). When I go to Oakland a friend
from L.A. is going to fly JB to OAK and then prob
take Amtrak back
Gives new meaning to getting canned...ping!
i am laughing my behind off! xshub just flew JetBlue back from NYC yesterday!
Sounds to me like this particular pilot will be lucky if he gets to command a school bus from now on. No more flying for him.
This is the end of the “buddy pass”.
JetLoo?
Methinks the pilot and stewardess were more than close friends.....
$2 million? Toss the case out as frivolous, possibly fine the man for wasting the court’s time.
I think he should sue the pilot personally - that's who was at fault (if this really happened - I have my doubts).
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