A woman is suing American Airlines after she was allegedly sexually assaulted on board a flight by a stranger who was sitting next to her.
The New Jersey woman, who has not been identified, is suing the airline after the incident occurred on August 26, 2022, during an overnight flight from Charlotte, North Carolina, to Newark Liberty International Airport.
It is alleged that after sitting next to her friend, the woman closed her eyes to sleep and was digitally penetrated by ‘an unknown male passenger’.
The woman blames American Airlines for not preventing the attack or intervening to stop it, As reported by The Independent.
The lawsuit, which was filed earlier this month in federal court, said: ‘Shortly after takeoff, the flight attendant turned off the cabin lights and Plaintiff closed her eyes to sleep.
An unnamed woman has sued American Airlines after allegedly being assaulted on board. (An American Airlines Airbus at New York’s LaGuardia Airport)
The incident on August 26, 2022, during an overnight flight from Charlotte, North Carolina, to Newark Liberty International Airport (pictured)
‘The complainant awoke to find the attacker’s left arm inside her pants and his right hand forcing her hand onto his penis.’
According to the complaint, the unknown man covered them with a black quilted jacket.
The woman was described as frozen and in a “state of shock and panic.”
The traveler also managed to climb on top of the woman and continue his assault.
The suit added: “Plaintiff worked up the courage to push the perpetrator, at which point he quickly returned to his seat.”
The alleged attacker then tried to act as if nothing had happened and even asked the woman if she wanted water.
But the New Jersey woman managed to wake up her friend, who reported the alleged assault to a flight attendant.
The woman was moved to a different seat for the remainder of the flight.
After the plane landed, the man was escorted off the plane and authorities took reports from the victim and other passengers.
But it is not known whether the alleged attacker has been arrested or charged with sexual assault, according to the lawsuit.
The woman’s lawyer, Brian Andris, told The Independent: “As alleged in the complaint, we look forward to seeking justice on behalf of our client to remedy this terrible injustice for all she has suffered.”
In July, Gretchen Stelter (pictured) said she was sexually assaulted while flying home to Chicago on business after a vacation in Mexico.
This is not the first time that sexual assault allegations have been made aboard an American Airlines flight. (File image of two American Airlines passenger jets at Phoenix Sky Harbor)
An American Airlines spokesperson said: “We are reviewing demand and flight details. The safety and comfort of our customers is a priority for American.”
This is not the first time there have been allegations of sexual assault on board an American Airlines flight.
In July, Gretchen Stelter was flying home to Chicago on a business jet after a vacation in Mexico.
She claims a “drunk” passenger sitting next to her began making a series of vulgar comments.
Speaking to Inside Edition, Ms Stelter said: “The flight attendants had to come over and ask if everything was OK. I told them no.”
Another passenger saw what was happening and offered to change seats.
But when she tried to climb on top of the passenger, Ms Stelter said he groped her by putting his hands on her bottom.
Stelter claims in a lawsuit that flight attendants “took no action” to protect her.
And in May of this year, Tiffany Morgan, a frequent American Airlines flyer, began legal proceedings against the Fort Worth-based airline for negligence after she was “aggressively” sexually assaulted.
She claims this happened while she was asleep under the influence of sleeping pills, while an off-duty flight attendant sitting nearby watched.
Ms. Morgan, an attorney at a New York City-based entertainment law firm, frequently traveled on American Airlines for work and pleasure.
She now claims that she has been “robbed” of the ability to travel independently because she is afraid of suffering a similar attack.
She took two Benadryl before boarding to help her relax and sleep during the two-hour flight from Florida to Pennsylvania, as she was nervous about traveling.
About 30 or 40 minutes before the end of the flight, a flight attendant in the back row woke her up by tapping her on the shoulder.
The flight attendant urged Ms. Morgan to go to the galley at the back of the plane.
Once there, she was asked if she knew her seatmate, who was said to be “visibly intoxicated” and surrounded by small, empty vodka bottles.
Ms Morgan was told her seatmate had been “aggressively touching her breast” but she had not done anything because she “didn’t know what to do”.
The off-duty flight attendant witnessed the assault and told Ms Morgan the man waved his hands in front of her face to make sure she was sleeping.
He then began to grope, rub and fondle her breasts.
But the off-duty crew member was unsure whether Ms Morgan was travelling with the suspect and so informed the other flight attendants, one of whom allegedly admitted to overserving the suspect.
Ms Morgan was found a new seat and the plane was met by police on arrival.
But police told Morgan they had no jurisdiction over the in-flight incidents and that the matter would have to be handled by the FBI.
There was a delay in the FBI arriving at the door because it was the weekend and the suspect was not arrested.
A year later, Ms. Morgan claimed that American Airlines had never contacted her to discuss the events and that her attempts to reach the airline went unanswered.
The lawsuit, filed in a Florida district court, says: ‘AA’s failure to act or even respond is not only disappointing and appalling in the wake of a substantiated sexual assault against a female passenger, but raises serious concerns for other women who travel alone with the airline.
‘AA’s failure to ignore this incident is unacceptable given the seriousness of what occurred and the contemporaneous acknowledgement by its crew of the seriousness of the incident and their role in allowing it to occur and/or continue.’
Ms. Morgan is suing American Airlines for negligence while also filing a civil suit against the suspect for sexual assault and battery.
In recent years, there has been a marked increase in the number of reported sexual assaults on board flights. (Pictured, an American Airlines Boeing 737-823 passenger jet sits at a gate at Chicago’s O’Hare Airport.)
The FBI has issued an urgent warning over what it described as a “concerning” rise in sexual assaults on flights.
In recent years there has been a marked increase in the number of reports of sexual assault on board flights.
In 2023, the FBI opened 96 cases stemming from allegations of in-flight sexual assault.
The FBI also says many incidents of sexual assault go unreported.
But the characteristics of sexual assaults on board tend to be “strikingly similar.”
They typically occur when the cabin is dark, victims are in a window or middle seat, and victims report “waking up to their seatmate’s hands inside their clothing or underwear,” according to an FBI alert.
Perpetrators usually take advantage of passengers who are taking medication or who have had some drinks.
They also depend on victims not reporting them to the police out of embarrassment, not wanting to cause a scene, or even convincing themselves that the assault was “accidental.”