American Airlines Suspends Employee After Video Shows Him Telling Passenger: "Hit Me"

Jennifer Van Laar | April 22, 2017 12:00 PM

An American Airlines flight attendant has been suspended after video showed him challenging a passenger to "Hit me. Bring it on."

The confrontation occurred after the flight attendant allegedly violently took a stroller away from a female passenger and the stroller hit her in the face. The woman was holding her baby at the time, and the video shows her saying, "You can't use violence with baby."

The male passenger then said to the flight attendant, "You do that to me and I'll knock you flat." The flight attendant then said, "Hit me. Bring it on."

Passenger Surain Adyanthaya posted the video on his Facebook page.

He posted an update saying that the woman and her children had been removed from the flight, which then proceeded to Dallas-Fort Worth.

American Airlines released a statement Friday night:

We have seen the video and have already started an investigation to obtain the facts. What we see on this video does not reflect our values or how we care for our customers. We are deeply sorry for the pain we have caused this passenger and her family and to any other customers affected by the incident. We are making sure all of her family's needs are being met while she is in our care. After electing to take another flight, we are taking special care of her and her family and upgrading them to first class for the remainder of their international trip.
The actions of our team member captured here do not appear to reflect patience or empathy, two values necessary for customer care. In short, we are disappointed by these actions. The American team member has been removed from duty while we immediately investigate this incident.