Pilot Calls Out Indian Men's Behaviour Towards Flight Attendants: "Secret Pics, Creepy Comments"

NDTV

5 hours ago

An international airline pilot took to Reddit to call out the behaviour of some Indian male passengers towards female flight attendants. She expressed frustration and embarrassment over repeated incidents of disrespect towards flight attendants, including unwanted photos, creepy comments, staring, and inappropriate physical contact.
"I'm a pilot working for an international airline, and over time, I've heard this same complaint from cabin crew again and again that a lot of Indian men behave inappropriately towards female flight attendants. We're talking about things like secretly taking photos of them, making creepy comments, staring, or even trying to "accidentally" brush up against them. And sadly, more often than not, it's Indian men," she wrote in the post.
The pilot stressed that while not all Indian men exhibit this behaviour, it's common enough that crew members have come to anticipate it from Indian passengers. She expressed shame that their actions contribute to a growing negative stereotype of Indian male travellers globally, and lamented the bad reputation being created due to the actions of a few individuals.
"It's honestly embarrassing. I hate that we're building such a bad reputation because of the actions of a few, but it keeps happening often enough that crew members immediately recognise the pattern. I genuinely don't understand what goes through someone's head when they think it's okay to treat another professional. Whether it's entitlement, lack of exposure, or just plain disrespect, it's something we seriously need to talk about more openly," she added.
See the post here:
As a pilot, I'm embarrassed by how often Indian men disrespect flight attendants
by u/CupPleasant8812 in TwoXIndia
The pilot also called on Indians to speak out against such behaviour. The post resonated with many users, including flight attendants, who shared their own stories and experiences.
One user shared a similar experience, revealing that he had overheard flight attendants expressing dread about flying with Indian male passengers, particularly middle-aged ones, due to past experiences with inappropriate behaviour, unwanted touching, and drunken passengers causing unnecessary drama on flights from India to Thailand.
Another user commented, "I work for an international airline as a flight attendant and thank god for my company that we have strict rules in place in case a passenger behaves inappropriately. Indian aviation has such a pathetic approach to this, where you're expected to put up with anything just because the customer is 'god' It sucks how some people have ruined the experience of flying all in all because they have no decency and manners on how to behave on flights."
A third user wrote, "Indian men have the worst reputation globally. They should count their good luck that only Indian women, who have been conditioned to accept that they are allowed to have zero standards, put up with them."
A fourth added, "Knowing no repercussions will befall them is the reason why."