Op-Ed: Alec Baldwin Has Words For American Airlines
Baldwin, booted off flight for playing game, has his own war of words with the airline.
Last time it was words with his family (specifically, his daughter); this time it was Words With Friends. Alec Baldwin is in trouble for his words. Again.
On Tuesday, Baldwin boarded an American Airlines flight and did not turn off his phone when asked by the crew. The actor was playing the popular Words With Friends game and would not turn off the device before take off.
The Washington Post reported that - quelle surprise - Baldwin and American Airlines have conflicting stories about the incident.
Here's the airline's version: Baldwin became irate and stormed into the bathroom, slamming the door so loudly that it was heard and felt in the cockpit. From the airline bathroom, Baldwin began tweeting about the incident.
Meanwhile, the cockpit crew asked the cabin crew to investigate the situation. Apparently, though hard to believe, the airline reports that Baldwin was then offensive and rude and used "inappropriate" language. The flight was delayed as Baldwin was escorted off the plane.
On Wednesday, American Airlines released a statement on its Facebook page about the incident. Airline officials cited FAA regulations, "Cell phones and electronic devices are allowed to be used while the aircraft is at the gate and the door is open for boarding. When the door is closed for departure and the seat belt light is turned on, all cell phones and electronic devices must be turned off for taxi-out and take-off."
Baldwin posted his version of the incident in a blog in the Huffington Post titled My Flying Lesson. He started out with an apology to his fellow passengers for the disturbance and the delay. Then he cited his longtime allegiance to American Airlines. Next he said that the flight was delayed and while they were still sitting at the gate, he took out his phone.
He said that he was singled out by a crew member, even though other passengers were using their phones, too. He put it away. The plane still sat there so he took it out again and was again singled out.
Baldwin referred to the American Airlines crew member as a "1950s gym teacher" with a clipboard and a whistle and said, "They have made flying a Greyhound bus experience."
Interestingly, he made no mention of leaving his seat, the bathroom tweet and being um, less than sweet. In an addendum to his first blog post, he did say, "I never yelled at or used inappropriate language to ANYONE on that plane. American's need to dirty me up is pro forma, but transparent. ... if American was so concerned about my behavior, why did they seat me on the next flight and fly me home to New York at 3 p.m.?"
Seizing an opportunity for publicity and reported widely in the media, Greyhound jumped in to defend it's reputation. Greyhound's CEO, Dave Leach, sent an open letter to Baldwin admitting to some past challenges for the bus company. But he listed the many improved features and services and further, he invited Baldwin to accompany him on a trip from New York to Boston.
Leach tried to entice Baldwin by mentioning that he would not have to turn off any of his electronic devices for the trip.
After many heated Twitter reponses about the incident, Baldwin deactivated his Twitter account.
Baldwin made a surprise appearance on Saturday Night Live last night to spoof the incident. He played .... wait for it....an airline pilot...and apologized to himself.
Baldwin's Saturday Night Live appearances are usually hilarious and legendary. In my opinion, unfortunately, this was not up to his usual standard.
Did Alec learn his Flying Lesson? Will he fly the friendly skies again? Will he be singing The Wheels on the Bus? In any event, Baldwin should really stay away from words games of any kind. It seems he is much more suited for Angry Birds.
Just saying.
Jenny
7:14 pm on Sunday, December 11, 2011
Much as Alec has tried to revamp his image to a smilie guy from a sour puss these last couple of years, his true character and flaws always comes seeping up to the surface. He has made strides in his public persona, but alas, he is a sour puss, will always be a sour puss. Just a sour individual. He should quit trying to be something he is not. Nice.
John Fonseca
9:57 pm on Sunday, December 11, 2011
"America gets the celebrities we deserve."
-Nicole Blackman
John Doodledo
11:46 pm on Sunday, December 11, 2011
arent you the most SNL host?
richard sorensen
12:29 am on Monday, December 12, 2011
Why is this being covered in the Caldwells Patch? Who is Alec Baldwin?
--Richard Sorensen
CMann
8:51 am on Monday, December 12, 2011
And this story is relevant to Maplewood? New Jersey? Let's keep our Patch stories local.
Nick Muson
11:13 am on Monday, December 12, 2011
Why do you comment if you have no interest?
Lunar
9:19 am on Monday, December 12, 2011
The incident may draw more attention towards Alec Baldwin but that is unfortunate. It is about time something is done about the rude and dictatorial behavior of some of the US based airliner cabin crew is curbed. It seems that the post-9/11 security regime has given a carte blanche to anyone associated with airports and flying with unacceptable behavior and the american cabin crew, in particular, have taken this lesson to heart.
Anyone who flies regularly within the US would recall unpleasant experiences with them. While it is not their enforcement of the rules that is an issue most of the time, it is the arbitrary manner and the rude behavior, that is galling. And we are the customers. The plane is probably the place where we pay so much money AND are forced to put up with so much abuse.
The apologists for the crew usually defend them saying that they get tired after so many hours, dealing with the complaints and delayed/harried passengers etc. etc. To which my reaction is this: isn't this the job they chose? What if you walked into your bank branch and were treated abusively, just because the staff had to deal with a rush of customers? Of course, the other side of the coin is the perks of the job, including fewer number of hours worked, visiting places etc.
I emphasize that not all the cabin crew behave like that but those that do, leave bad memories of that trip and there are still too many of them.
Damien Gibbons
3:46 pm on Monday, December 12, 2011
Well said.
unleb
11:08 am on Monday, December 12, 2011
As someone who flies around 100,000 miles a year, I must defend the cabin crew. While there are unpleasant exceptions, most flight attendants are polite, helpful and considerate, in my experience. I wish I could say as much for the passengers. The sense of entitlement, the "those rules don't apply to me" behavior... it's a wonder there aren't more incidents like this. I often see people up during taxi (a big no-no on a plane), talking on cell phones after the cabin door is closed, giving grief to the crew, trying to bring aboard oversized luggage at the last minute, and then pitching a fit when told that their bag won't fit... Civility goes both ways, and I find that being nice in the first place usually gets you nice in return.
Lunar
11:33 am on Monday, December 12, 2011
I am a million miler myself and have met some very nice cabin crew over many years of flying. My comments were directed at those who would not fit in the "nice" category.
Yes, certain things can be done easily to reduce the confrontation between the passengers and the cabin crew. There are people with large size bags and they should be stopped at the gate, before they board. Cabin crew should not be the ones to deal with the problems these passengers cause to the crew and other passengers.
Beyond that, even if someone needs to be reminded to switch off the phone, the first time around it does not need to be rude. I find that the civility and politeness seem to have completely gone out of such crew's behavior the moment they see someone in that situation. For that matter, even if someone is not displaying a sense of entitlement, the attitude from a lot of the crew seems to be that of doing the passengers a favor by doing whatever little service they provide. This notion of "we are here only for safety" is completely misguided. Unfortunately I have seen a rapid rise in such displays than even at the beginning of the millennium.
unleb
7:32 pm on Monday, December 12, 2011
I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. Over my 30 years of flying, I have found far more disagreeable passengers than disagreeable crew. I understand the frustration generated by the "security theater" of the TSA, and people are pretty unhappy by the time they get on the plane, but I see flight attendants taking crap from at least a half dozen passengers before the door is even closed, pretty much on EVERY flight. The complete lack of civility is pretty startling. It's been said that an accurate test of someone's true demeanor can often be gauged by how they treat perceived "service" people. If that's true, there are some pretty nasty people flying these days.
Lunar
9:37 pm on Monday, December 12, 2011
Fair enough. I do not defend the passengers' rude behavior either.
But consider this. Let's say it is true of every flight that there are on average half a dozen rude passengers who make their arrival known to everyone as they get on board. First, the crew should by now be prepared (whether by the airline or by practice; probably both) to deal with them, if need be, sternly. Secondly, there is no need to dish out rudeness to the remaining 130 - 150 odd passengers, just because of them! And in any case, the deck is loaded against the passengers. If a passenger is rude, the crew can easily summon security/police at departure gate or upon arrival. What can the passenger do? Nothing. Good luck with writing to the company and getting a satisfactory response. If at all.
With all the tension created in today's air travel in the US, you DO expect some passengers to be quite flustered (think of families with kids during holiday travel, the only they may be able to travel together!) Should the people who earn a living out of this industry not also be made responsible for easing those tensions?
Bottom line: there is no excuse for rude behavior on either side.