The internet is full of complaints about nightmare passengers on flights, but one captain made sure to put a stop to it before the plane had even taken off.
Holidaymakers traveling on a TUI flight from Glasgow, Scotland, to Tenerife, Spain, on August 9 got a surprise visit from the captain as they boarded the plane, as he stood among the passengers to make an announcement over the intercom.
That announcement? A stern warning that there would be no misbehaving on his plane.
In a video captured by 31-year-old Stephanie Still, who posts to TikTok and Instagram under the username @millennial_menu_, the captain said he had heard that the behavior of some passengers in the departure lounge was "getting towards the limit of what is tolerable."
Newsweek reached out multiple times to TUI for comment via phone and email. This article will be updated if they respond.
The captain set down the "ground rules," reminding passengers it is a family flight and telling them to be "very, very careful about the way you behave on this flight".
"I do not tolerate any rowdy behavior on the aircraft," he warned. "It's not fair to anybody else on board, it's certainly not fair on my crew."
He acknowledged that people may have been drinking, which is fine as they are on vacation, but warned: "Do not let it get out of control on this airplane."
He also ordered them to comply with cabin crew, who are "critical" to the safety of the aircraft, and sternly reminded everyone that nobody is allowed to smoke on the flight.
And, if anyone broke the rules, he assured them he had no issue with handing them over to authorities once they landed in Tenerife, and their vacation would not be what they had expected.
In the United States, disruptive passengers can face legal trouble if they are unruly on a flight, including civil penalties of up to $37,000 per violation, according to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Serious cases can even be referred to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). In a 2023 post, the FAA announced they had referred more than 270 cases to the FBI since 2021.
Still told Newsweek the flight had initially been delayed, as "apparently a group of people had been really rowdy in the departures lounge."
"From what I could gather, they'd drank too much and been carrying on, but hadn't really heeded any warnings," she said.
She began recording after she heard the captain tell everyone to "direct your attention to the 6 foot 4 inches man in the middle of the plane," as she thought it was "so unusual" and first believed something was wrong.
And, she said, the speech worked. After taking off, the "flight went without a hitch".
Still regularly posts to TikTok under the Millennial Menu username, which she runs with her twin sister, to showcase foodie spots in their native Scotland, as well as travel and lifestyle tips.
And while her video from the flight is a change of pace for the foodie vlog, it has exploded in popularity, racking up 103,000 likes since being shared on August 10.
Thousands commented on the clip, with one praising the captain for "laying rules down in a firm and understandable manner for everyone."
Another revealed they worked for the TUI airline, and said "all our captains are this brilliant, as are our crew."
And one shared that he, too, was on the same flight, calling the captain an "absolute legend," adding: "His headmaster speach [sic] thankfully worked."
And Still agreed, telling Newsweek: "I'm actually a principal teacher myself and he was channeling some serious teacher vibes, I could learn a thing or two from him!"
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