A Southwest Airlines flight from Houston to Phoenix was delayed Monday afternoon after a female passenger suddenly got up and started undressing.
A woman on the plane who witnessed the incident but asked not to be identified told Houston CBS affiliate KHOU that the plane had barely left the gate when her fellow passenger decided to remove all her clothes.
After that, the naked passenger started walking up and down the aisle, demanding to be let out of the plane, the witness recounted.
“She then proceeded to make her way back toward the front of the plane and started banging on the cockpit doors, asking to be let in, and she was screaming,” the witness told the station. “When it first happened, it was really scary.”
Another passenger, who asked to remain anonymous, told Phoenix NBC affiliate KPNX that the naked woman shouted that she was bipolar while hitting various parts of the plane with her hands.
“She started, like, jumping up and down, screaming at the top of her lungs,” the witness said.
Various people on the flight said they tried to remain calm during the incident and ignore what was happening as much as possible.
The naked woman walked around the plane for about 25 minutes before employees took action, according to Houston ABC affiliate KTRK.
Things took a turn when she reportedly got really close to one of the flight attendants and started rubbing her body all over the woman.
“She, like, put her whole body onto the woman flight attendant, and was rubbing all over her,” a witness told KPNX.
At that point, the plane returned to the gate so an airline employee at the airport could board the plane, cover the naked passenger with a blanket, and physically remove her.
The Houston Police Department took the woman away for medical evaluations, but a department spokesperson told KPNX no charges would be filed against her.
The decision shocked many people on the plane, “considering that she got naked in front of a bunch of kids and anyone else,” one witness remarked.
Southwest Airlines released this statement after the incident:
“Local law enforcement met Flight 733 from Houston to Phoenix Monday afternoon after it returned to the gate because of a customer situation onboard. We’ve reached out to customers to apologize for the delay and appreciate their patience as our teams worked to get them to their destinations as quickly as possible.”
Although the number of unruly passenger incidents reported by airline crews has leveled off since spiking in 2021, the Federal Aviation Administration said there were still more than 2,000 incidents in 2024, KPNX reported.
If you or someone you know needs help, call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org for mental health support. Additionally, you can find local mental health and crisis resources at dontcallthepolice.com.