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This is what I experienced on a recent US Airways flight. Below is a copy of the email that I sent to US Airways about my experience.
Yesterday (6/25/2011) I was on US Airways flight 565 from Phoenix to Orlando with my two young children (Ages 7 and 8). We were seated in row 5, the first row behind first class.
During the flight instructions at the beginning of the flight included that passengers in the economy cabin should use the restrooms at the back of the plane, which I understand. During the flight, many passengers from the economy cabin went forward to use the bathroom in first class and nothing was said, so it appeared to be an accepted practice. There was one elderly woman sitting behind me who used the restroom a lot.
Near the end of the flight, when the elderly woman came out of the first class restroom, a flight attendant admonished her, because the seat belt light was on, had her go back to her seat and then the flight attendant closed a secured the partition between first class and economy.
About 10 minutes later a flight attendant from the rear of the plane had to pass through the partition and she couldn't get through! She really had to struggle and then she had to reach through the side of the partition to free it. Much to my surprise, the flight attendant who has secured the partition had done so by securing the partition loops around hangers that are attached to the back of the first class compartment. After the second flight attendant struggled to open it, when it was finally opened, there was a hanger still attached to the partition loop.
Now, had there been an actual emergency, in closing the partition in this manner would have prevented people in the economy cabin from reaching the closest emergency exit, also creating a bottleneck and possible crushing injuries as frightened people surged forward. Since I was in the front row of the economy cabin with my two children, we would have been greatly impacted and most likely injured by this blatant safety violation that was brought about by the actions of the flight crew. If I as a passenger were to create a safety violation, I'm sure that I would at least be arrested and possibly prosecuted. The flight crews job is to protect the safety of the passengers, not to endanger it for their own convenience.
I am looking to pursue this matter to it's fullest, as it appears to me that this is not the first time that this violation has occurred, especially with the ease that the flight attendant secured the first class cabin partition in violation of safety regulations. I understand that passengers need to act in a manner that keeps everyone safe. Flight attendants should be held to a much higher standard.
Maybe I should have addressed this with the Captain or someone else at the airport, but I didn't. I wanted to make sure that this violation received the highest level of attention that it deserves.
I look forward to hearing from all involved parties for a quick and safe resolution to this dangerous situation.