Alaska Airlines takes epic stand for women everywhere after kicking man off flight from Seattle for catcall

Alaska Airlines says it stands by its staff. Photo / 123RF

A man who catcalled a flight attendant during a safety demonstration has been thrown off an Alaska Airlines plane.

The incident happened on Sunday during a flight from Seattle and later documented on a passengers Facebook account.

Amber Nelson says that the flight attendants were doing the in-flight safety demonstration when things escalated.

"I had an experience that drove home so powerfully the way it feels to be a woman in the world today," she wrote. "Before take off from SeaTac the flight attendants ran through their safety rules as they always do. Not all of us were paying very close attention. But a man in the row behind me changed all that by calling out 'ooh, sexy!' in response to a female flight attendant demonstrating how to use the life vest."

Today I had an experience that drove home so powerfully the way it feels to be a woman in the world today. Before take...

Posted by Amber D. Nelson on Sunday, 9 October 2016

"The flight attendant removed her vest, purposely walked up to him and said, 'You need to be respectful,' and started to walk back to her task. He said, 'C'mon, I'm just playing with you!'," Ms Nelson wrote. "As she walked to the front of the plane, the safety instruction was abandoned and she convened a conversation with her colleagues. Tense moments passed and we saw an affable-looking man board the plane and walk our way.

The offensive man behind me started saying 'I didn't do anything wrong! I didn't do anything wrong!' The airline employee asked the man to gather his belongings and exit the plane."

"It was everything we could do to keep from applauding as he was led away," she said. "I felt honoured as a patron of the airline - and as a woman - because Alaska Airlines supported their staff and those of us on board who were demeaned by another passenger's juvenile and exceedingly disrespectful behaviour."

Alaska Airlines confirmed Ms Nelson's account of events.

"The account on Facebook from our passenger is accurate," the airline said in a statement. "We can confirm that a male passenger was removed from flight 520 on October 9 from Seattle to Burbank prior to departure. We stand behind the actions taken by our employees."

The US Federal Aviation Administration states that "no person may assault, threaten, intimidate, or interfere with a crew member in the performance of the crewmember's duties aboard an aircraft being operated."