A Texas passenger's stowaway plan almost worked, plus four other top travel stories from last week.
Last week, a passenger hurling racist slurs was arrested; another tried to fly without a ticket and was detained by the authorities; and the U.S. dropped out of the world’s happiest countries list. Here are the five top travel stories that you might have missed last week.
TEXAS MAN ARRESTED ON STOWAWAY CHARGES
A 26-year-old passenger was arrested in Salt Lake City when it was found that he didn’t have a ticket.
Wicliff Yves Fleurizard boarded a Delta flight from Salt Lake City International Airport to Austin, Texas, without a ticket for the flight. Fleurizard allegedly took photographs of boarding passes from other passengers so he could the flight. Once inside, he remained in the front lavatory, and after boarding was completed, he moved to the rear lavatory.
While the plane was taxiing, he left the bathroom and a flight attendant noticed that there were no empty seats. Fleurizard lied that his seat was 21F, but the crew determined that a ticket holder was already in their seat and that Fleurizard didn’t have a reservation. The plane returned to the gate where he was arrested on stowaway charges.
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FLORIDA PASSENGER THREATENS TO DOWN AIRCRAFT
A video of a scuffle on an American Airlines flight to Philadelphia made the rounds last week. In the video, a drunk man is seen using racist and antisemitic slurs at fellow passengers, calling them “blue-eyed devils” and threatening to take the plane down. The unruly passenger, identified as 29-year-old Shail Patel from Florida, also slapped someone before another passenger put him in a headlock. As the plane was still at Tampa International Airport, Patel was forcefully escorted from the flight, and arrested by the authorities. The flight was delayed by 30 minutes.
Related: This Is What You Need to Do if There’s an Unruly Passenger on Your Flight
FINLAND IS THE HAPPIEST COUNTRY IN THE WORLD (AGAIN)
For the seventh consecutive year, Finland has come up top as the happiest country in the world, followed by Denmark, Iceland, and Sweden. The World Happiness Report by the University of Oxford’s Wellbeing Research Center evaluates GDP, social support, freedom, life expectancy, generosity, and freedom from corruption to rank countries.
Surprisingly, the U.S. has fallen to the 23rd spot from 15 last year. Germany also lost its spot in the top 20 and is now 24.
Jennifer De Paola, a Happiness researcher at the University of Helsinki in Finland, credited work-life balance and connection to nature to happiness in Finland. She also said that Finns have a more attainable understanding of a successful life compared to Americans where financial success determines overall success. Free healthcare and education and trust in authorities are also important factors.
Another worrying revelation made in this report: happiness among North American youth (15-24) has fallen sharply.
D.O.T. TO REVIEW HOW AIRLINES USE PASSENGER DATA
The Department of Transportation is reviewing how airlines collect and handle customer data. Airlines receive a massive amount of data from passengers, including their name, address, and contact details, along with seating and meal preferences. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said, “Airline passengers should have confidence that their personal information is not being shared improperly with third parties or mishandled by employees.”
The 10 national carriers being asked to participate are Allegiant, Alaska, American, Delta, Frontier, Hawaiian, JetBlue, Southwest, Spirit, and United.
Other departments are also involved in investigations related to aviation. The FBI has contacted passengers on Alaska Airlines flight whose door plug blew off mid-air in January. As per reports, the passengers are possible victims of a crime, which is a new blow to the aircraft manufacturer that had a deal with the Justice Department after two of its planes crashed in 2018 and 2019. Apart from this, the Federal Aviation Administration is taking a closer look at United Airlines after multiple aircraft incidents, all involving Boeing planes. Boeing’s CEO announced his resignation today.
SCOTTISH MAN FALLS OVERBOARD ON EUROPEAN CRUISE
A 23-year-old passenger fell from MSC Euribia and is feared dead. Liam Jones boarded the cruise at Southampton, England, and was enroute to Hamburg, Germany, when he fell overboard. Before his disappearance, Jones had texted his wife, Sophia Mcphee, that he was feeling seasick. Mcphee was later informed by Jones’ sister that CCTV footage showed him going overboard.
In another tragic event, two crew members on a Holland America cruise died due to an “incident.” The cruise set sail from Fort Lauderdale for a seven-night trip and the accident happened in the Bahamas. It is being investigated by the Bahamas Maritime Authority.
Related: Dutch Court Rules KLM Misled Customers