Plane passenger tries to light cigarette mid-flight

Woman claims flight attendant ‘snatched’ cigarette out of man’s hands

The passenger appeared to light up at his seat (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

A video of a man attempting to light a cigarette on an American Airlines flight has gone viral after a fellow passenger shared it online.

Sara Radosevich tweeted from the American Airlines flight on Tuesday 6 December after witnessing the man trying to smoke mid flight.

The video showed the man, who was sitting a few seats away from her, pulling out a lighter and lighting a cigarette, before the footage cuts out.

Radosevich wrote: “This guy really just lit a cigarette mid flight. @AmericanAir good thing your girly pop flight attendant snatched it out of his hands.”

American Airlines’ official Twitter account commented: “Our team is on top of this and appreciate you bringing this to our attention. Please DM the flight details.”

There has so far been no update on what followed. The Independent has approached American Airlines for comment.

Cigarettes weren’t banned on US airlines until the 1980s, and the rule has been internationally recognised since 2000.

Earlier this year, a passenger was kicked off a Jetstar plane to Bali for lighting a cigarette while on board.

A video of the incident went viral on TikTok after a fellow passenger posted it. They wrote: “This guy thinks a delayed flight means he can light a dart on the plane. No Bali vacay for you now.”

It caused significant delays to the journey, which was headed from Melbourne to Bali’s Denpasar Airport, and the flight could only take off after the man was removed from the plane.

Passengers commented that they were forced to sit on the plane for “11 hours”. The typical flight time is six hours 15 minutes.