Southwest Airlines passenger goes viral: What happened to the woman who threatened the airport employee?

Sometimes, it feels like never a week goes by without an episode of air rage - either in the air or waiting to board. Travelling isn’t fun and someone, somewhere, isn’t happy.

Flying in general in more stressful than ever - there are more people flying, more rules and regulations to know about and abide by, and even those can change from one month to the next...

And to top it all, in this digital age, some people feel the need to record everything, then upload the results to social media.

Passenger suffers meltdown at Denver Airport

The latest airport meltdown to go viral on TikTok happened in the departures lounge at Denver International Airport. A young woman began hysterically shouting at staff after being told that her Southwest flight bound for Boise had been overbooked, and as a result, there were no seats left and she wouldn’t be able to board.

“Do you guys feel safe?” the enraged woman asked other passengers, holding aloft her mobile phone. But while she was recording her argument with an airport staffer, someone else was also filming social media influencer Taylor Graboyes, who put it out on TikTok.

“Get sued bitch, I swear to God‚” the unidentified woman ranted. “How dare you treat me this way!? How dare you! Who are you? I’d asked you why is our plane late. Why are not [sic] we boarding. Can you tell me that I cannot board now? Because I question why it is late! Cause we have a schedule. Where’s the camera, roll it back please, come and breathalyze me. Who’s gonna come and get you fired, because this is not okay”.

From the conversation, it transpired that the women may possibly have been denied boarding due to a common, controversial practice - overbooking.

What is overbooking? Why do airlines do it and what’s the deal?

It is not illegal for airlines to sell more tickets than there are available seats for a flight - it creates more choice and cheaper fares for consumers. However, it relies on predicted ‘no shows’ - those who don’t arrive at the airport on time or miss/cancel their flight for another reason.

Sometimes, it means that airlines wrongly estimate the number of passengers who show up for their flight and have to bump a passenger onto another, later flight.

Passengers left without a seat due to overbooking is rare (0.09% cases in the US in 2016). Standard practice calls for airlines to call for volunteers who are willing to give up their seat in exchange for an agreed-upon offer.

If no volunteers step forward, passengers who are involuntarily denied board must be re-routed and awarded proportionate compensation.

Get your game on! Whether you’re into NFL touchdowns, NBA buzzer-beaters, world-class soccer goals, or MLB home runs, our app has it all.

Dive into live coverage, expert insights, breaking news, exclusive videos, and more – plus, stay updated on the latest in current affairs and entertainment. Download now for all-access coverage, right at your fingertips – anytime, anywhere.