Originally published at: Pilot sues Southwest after co-pilot allegedly locked the cockpit, got naked, and "committed a lewd act" | Boing Boing
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Sounds like the primary problem is what was in his hand.
Anyway, how can someone consent to be the target of a prank? Either she had prior knowledge of what he was planning to do (in which case it wasn’t a prank) or she didn’t (in which case she couldn’t consent).
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Do CoA’s for commercial airliners mandate any sort of specific inspection and remediation procedure in the event of possible fluid ingress in glass cockpit systems and avionics?
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he now claims it was she who encouraged him to take off his clothes, and she “who made sexual advances after he disrobed.”
Sounds like a typical sex pest, who can’t/won’t hear objections to their behavior.
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You filthy disgusting 
pig, lawsuit the ever mofo shit out’a them. Please Baby Jesus let me never get on a plane 
again.
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Seems cock pit voice recorder could solve this s/he said quickly.
Cant wait to see this on AIR CRASH INVESTIGATIONS!
and don’t they always bolt the door after 9-11?
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So, turbulence really isn’t what we think it is?
At least on SW flights.
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The concept doesn’t seem impossible to me–a prior history with the person that indicates they wouldn’t mind such a prank. It does not seem that it was consensual in this case, though.
However, this seems to me like the airline saw he was about to retire anyway and took the easy way out (by the time they properly investigated the matter he probably would have retired anyway)–but threw her under the bus in the process.
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How would disrobing and masturbating in front of another person even fit the definition of “prank?”
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And how could anyone not mind that? They’re supposed to be flying a goddamn airplane here.
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While sadly it may not be provable whether she consented to his (despicable) behavior, hasn’t he admitted to serious violations of FAA protocols, which itself should be grounds for fines and/or dismissal?
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Fly the over-friendly skies of Southwest.
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The guy has already admitted the incident happened. He was charged with a crime and pleaded guilty. He also has a history of prior sexual misconduct accusations.
If he wants to make the extremely difficult-to-believe claim that this woman (who he apparently hadn’t even met before this incident) was “consenting” to it then the burden of proof is on HIM to provide evidence it happened that way, not on her to disprove it.
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My reaction would be “quit being an idiot, get back to your job”. I’m sure this would not be a typical reaction, though.
Swell!
i agree with you completely, and perhaps I worded it poorly. I wasn’t trying to imply the burden of proof was on her, nor was I trying to trivialize it. My point was that in addition to the crime committed against the pilot, the co-pilot also violated FAA rules (at least according to my layperson’s knowledge of how a co-pilot should conduct themselves), and wouldn’t that be grounds for him being dismissed, even if the powers that be ignored the sex crime?
He did this as one of his last acts before retirement because he thought the airline wouldn’t bother taking any real disciplinary action against him since he was on his way out anyway. He was right.
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White male cis-het privilege is one helluva drug, it seems…
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Unless you’ve personally experienced similar sexual harassment from someone in a position of power over you in a setting where your life and the lives of scores of other people literally depended on the conduct of yourself and the person propositioning you then maybe you shouldn’t be so confident about how easily you’d shrug it off.
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I reiterate:
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