A couple who complained about a passenger in the row in front of them reclining their seat mid-flight have been added to an airline’s ‘no-fly list’ after the incident sparked controversy on social media.
The passengers were on board a Cathay Pacific flight from Hong Kong to London when the incident occurred, which is a trip that can take almost 15 hours after Russian airspace was closed off.
A Chinese woman took to social media to complain about being harassed by a couple seated behind her, saying the wife stretched her legs and put them on the armrests of her seat when she refused to put her seat up.
She then started scolding her in Cantonese and slapping her arm, the woman said, adding:
“When she realised I couldn’t speak Cantonese, she started calling me ‘mainland girl’ in a derogatory tone.”
The husband, who was seated directly behind her, “frantically pushed” the back of her seat, with footage uploaded onto social media platform Xiaohongshu showing the seat vibrating.
Cathay Pacific has banned a Hong Kong couple from its flights, saying they are now on a ‘no-fly list’ due to the pair “disrespecting fellow passengers”.
Several passengers who witnessed the incident criticised the Hong Kong couple’s behaviour.
“Don’t call yourself a Hong Konger, you bully,” one passenger said.
Another said, “This is too much. How old are you? Why are you bullying a young girl?”
The woman’s post on Xiaohongshu sparked similar outrage.
“If they want more space, they should have paid for first-class seats,” one person wrote.
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