A woman on TikTok thought the internet would be on her side when she posted a video of her argument with a fellow passenger while on a flight to Phoenix, Arizona. She claimed the other passenger expected her to accommodate a request simply because she wanted it and allegedly became “upset” when she refused.
However, as the clip racked up more than a million views, many viewers came away thinking the woman was the one in the wrong.
From their exchange in the video, it appears the disagreement began as the plane was preparing to land. The other passenger, who was seated across from the woman, had asked her to raise her window shade.
The woman refused, even after the passenger explained that she gets anxious during landings.
It is unclear how the disagreement escalated from there, but by the time the woman started filming, she was taunting the passenger. “Look at this lady. She’s so upset that she doesn’t have a window seat.”
The passenger shot back that she was simply asking her to be considerate. She also argued that the window shade is meant to be open when the plane is landing.
She called the woman a “terrible, terrible” person and said she felt “really sorry” for her.
The woman, in turn, accused the passenger of throwing a “temper tantrum” and told her to “exercise self control.” She told the passenger that if she wanted control of the window, she should have booked a window seat in the first place.
The two continued to go at each other for a while until the other passenger eventually put in an earpiece and appeared to disengage from the argument.
Netizens React to the In-Flight Argument
Many people harshly criticized the woman in the comments. One person said, “The person recording is THE PROBLEM.” Another wrote, “Just say no but you keep going and going.” A third remarked, “U just like drama GET A LIFE,” while a fourth told her, “Ew you’re a despicable human.”
Someone else said, “Telling her to ‘exercise self control’ when you couldn’t control yourself to not berate her for asking to open the window for 5 minutes upon landing is nuts. You just wanted to be upset with someone that day.”
Some also felt that the passenger’s request was harmless enough that there was little reason not to accommodate it. “Her request was reasonable, she just asked you to open the window shade for landing… you’re the unreasonable one,” one comment read. Another chimed in, “The woman said she has anxiety so why not be a decent human and just open it for her.” A third added, “Kindness costs nothing. I hope you learned something from that video.”
A few people did side with the woman, arguing that she had done nothing wrong and that the other passenger was at fault. “Book a window seat if you want the window. lol how hard is that? Her terrible planning doesn’t require entitlement for window access,” one netizen wrote.
The woman has since explained that she specifically booked the window seat because she wanted somewhere to lean comfortably without being shoulder to shoulder with another passenger. Despite the criticism, she has stood by her decision to refuse the request and maintained that the other passenger was acting from a place of “entitlement.”
