A man caught vaping on an American Airlines flight and consequently threatening an attendant has resurfaced to blame nicotine for his behavior.
Peter Nguyen was seated in the restroom when the hostess opened the door and read him the riot act for puffing away at his e-cigarette. While initially apologetic, he started filming the interaction.
Highlights
- Peter Nguyen was caught vaping in an airplane restroom on a Phoenix–San Francisco flight.
- Confrontations with flight attendants escalated to threats and accusations of assault.
- The passenger who threatened to post the video to 25,000 followers later apologized publicly.
At some point during the confrontation, he alleged that the airline staffer had reached for his phone, and from there onward it devolved into claims of assault and threats of legal action.
The hostess managed to override the lock on the restroom door
Image credits: kobe.pickleball
Speaking to Fox’s KTVU in California on August 8, the man responded to the question: “Do you wish you never even vaped in the bathroom on that plane?” with “I wish I never picked up a vape to begin with.”
According to Nguyen, the aircraft had been airborne for 35 minutes when his nicotine dependency got the better of him.
Image credits: Sachin Amjhad/Unsplash
He made his way to the bathroom stall, locked himself in, and then indulged in what he claims was only one drag.
To his surprise, the door opened from the outside even though he had locked himself in.
Peter Nguyen first apologized to the air hostess, then accused her of assaulting him
Nguyen told the attendant that he was merely using the loo—a subterfuge that turned out to be futile as she appeared to have no doubt about what he had been doing.
When he realized that lying was futile, he apologized. The attendant, however, would not let it slip that easily and countered: “You can keep saying you’re sorry, but I care about all these passengers.”
Bored Panda reported on August 8 that the interaction escalated and the flight attendant allegedly reached for his phone.
The passenger tried to turn the issue against the hostess and claimed that it was he who deserved an apology
Image credits: kobe.pickleball
Nguyen pivoted from apologetic to threatening while filming the interaction, claiming the staffer had laid hands on him.
“Yes, but she put her hands on me. I have a lawyer. I am a lawyer,” he could be heard saying to another staffer who joined the fray. But like her colleague, she scolded him for smoking in the bathroom.
“I have 25,000 followers. I have 25,000 followers that are going to watch this,” Nguyen threatened before declaring it was he who deserved an apology.
Image credits: kobe.pickleball
“So, do you want me to release this or do you want to say sorry to me right now?” he asked the first hostess.
He threatened to phone the police when the plane landed
Nguyen’s tirade continued: “I am actually gonna call the police when I get back on the ground. On you! You reached over me. You tried to grab my phone. You assaulted me,” he told the hostess who caught him vaping.
Image credits: kobe.pickeball
The commercial carrier has since indicated that it was Nguyen who was met by authorities when Flight 2860 landed in San Francisco.
“A customer on American Airlines flight 2860 with service from Phoenix (PHX) to San Francisco (SFO) was removed from the aircraft upon arrival at SFO due to disruptive behavior.”
“We thank our customers for their patience and apologize for any inconvenience.”
The vape-smoking flier has since changed his tune and apologized profusely
“It sucks knowing in order to be myself, I have to have nicotine,” he lamented pitifully. “I feel so helpless,” Nguyen told KTVU in the recent interview.
“The more you do it, like, the less effective it is. It's like your body builds a tolerance to it.”
Image credits: Giulia Squillace/Unsplash
Image credits: kobe.pickleball
It is unknown what transpired at the hands of American Airlines security and the San Francisco police, but his stance on the incident has changed.
“From the bottom of my heart, I'm sorry to the other passengers. There is no excuse. No excuse for what happened,” KTVU reported him saying.
Social media is marveling at how fast he "turned the whole thing into him being the victim"
