Overview
- The incident occurred on Nov. 9 on a United flight from Newark to Charleston after about three hours of pre-boarding delay and roughly 90 minutes on the tarmac, with passengers told they were 30th in line for takeoff.
- Video posted Nov. 10 by fellow passenger @haleyrose99 amassed roughly 500,000 views by late November and then spread widely across national outlets.
- Footage and witness accounts show the woman shouting repeated profanities at crew and passengers, with some witnesses saying she also urged others to kill themselves.
- Flight attendants moved nearby passengers, seated larger volunteers beside the woman as a precaution, returned to the gate, and had her escorted off.
- Coverage links the disruption to shutdown-related delays and highlights praise for the crew’s calm handling, with no widely reported official comment and unverified claims about drinking remaining unresolved.