Summary
- A mother’s frightening experience on a Delta flight raises concerns about security measures at airports across the country.
- Delta’s response to the incident suggests that airlines need to improve their processes for verifying passengers’ identities before boarding.
- Although no charges have been filed, questions remain as to how the unidentified man could have boarded the wrong plane.
A Georgia mother is still demanding answers from Delta Air Lines after her family was involved in a shocking incident on a flight from Washington Dulles earlier this month. The mother, Lauren Benton, said her husband and two children were Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) to Atlanta (ATL) when a strange man appeared to follow her family through the terminal and eventually on board.
Keep your distance
The family noticed what was going on, and Benton stressed that she tried to keep her distance from the strange man as the family waited in the terminal for their flight. However, they were shocked to see the man on board the plane as they headed to Hartsfield–Jackson Atlanta International Airport . Once on board, her panic grew even more when the man sat in her row. Benton recalled the moment she first became concerned:
“My heart immediately started pounding – I didn’t know what this man was up to. He was standing in the ladies’ room washing his hands and I was immediately alarmed.”
Photo: Kevin Hackert | Shutterstock
Benton’s husband decided to confront the man and asked if that was his seat, and eventually the stewardess on board intervened and demanded to see the man’s boarding pass. However, he was unable to produce it. The TSA then removed the unidentified passenger from the plane and determined that the passenger had a Boarding pass for another flight later that day. The administration also clarified that there was no security breach as the passenger had a valid ID and boarding pass for the trip and had the right to be in the terminal.
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No injuries to passengers or crew were reported.
More questions than answers
Not surprisingly, this has raised several questions, both TSA and passengers how the person was able to board the wrong plane without being intercepted at boarding by gate agents and crew checking boarding pass information. Former Federal Security Director Gerry Phelan noted to ABC that the airline should have been more vigilant:
“Delta should have made sure the boarding pass matched the person in question, which it did. But it certainly did not match the flight they boarded at that time.”
The Metropolitan Washington Airports Association has confirmed that the passenger was rescued from the aircraft police were called to the gate to question the man. However, no charges were filed. The man was then allowed to continue his journey (albeit on the flight he had originally booked).
Photo: Darryl Brooks | Shutterstock
Delta issued the following statement to ABC News following the incident:
“Delta has procedures in place for gate agents and flight crew to verify prior to departure that individuals on board the aircraft are customers booked on that particular flight. Delta is investigating the matter internally and has been in contact with airport authorities in connection with that investigation.”
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