Unfortunately, there are times when passengers behave wildly inappropriately on flights. I am not just talking about a snide remark, or someone who keeps their chair back all the way down and scrunches you into an even smaller space, but rather behavior of a sexual nature.

Several years ago, I was meeting a flight to usher passengers toward the customs area. It was a smaller, prop flight, small enough to not even have a flight attendant on board. Much to my chagrin, it was reported that a passenger had masturbated on board. I suppose luckily there were no children on board, and the First Officer told me it had been reported to the authorities. Which is why there was an entourage of police officers also meeting a flight with 18 passengers aboard.

They whisked away the alleged culprit, and I don't know what happened to him in the end. Certainly it's not the experience that others on this largely commuter flight were anticipating.

When I heard about a young woman who had experienced an incident where a passenger masturbated near her, I was reminded of the one I had dealt with years before, and realized that such incidents are not completely isolated ones.

The young woman is suing the airline over the flight incident (from United Press International)

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