CHARLOTTE — With the rise in mid-flight attacks on airline workers having some concerned for their safety, Channel 9′s Damany Lewis got an inside look at new, specialized training for flight attendants.
The tactics were developed in the wake of the September 11 attacks, but now crew members with decades of experience are learning skills they never thought they’d need.
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The two have nearly 100 combined years of flying experience but are doing something neither has ever done before -- learning to protect themselves from their own customers.
“I’m a 46-year flight attendant with American Airlines,” said Nancy Pollak.
“I have been flying for 52 years,” Julie Henderson, of Belmont, told Channel 9.
Channel 9 was there as half a dozen flight attendants took part in a self-defense training class. Each attendee said they came for the same reason.
“I mean, it’s just too much right now,” Pollak said. “I am 68. I want to be able to protect myself.”
Pollak said she is very aware of the rising number of attacks on flight attendants, and she’s worried about it.
“It’s like every week there is another,” she said. “You never know when or where it’s going to be.”
The FAA said that since the beginning of the year, there have been more than 5,000 passenger incidents mid-air -- most of them over masks. For some perspective, the FAA has already opened more than five times more investigations this year than in all of 2020.
Federal air marshals said self-defense training teaches de-escalation techniques and will give crew members confidence in their ability to defend themselves.
“They are here, number one, for their mindset,” said Michelle Facchina, an Air Marshal supervisor. “They need to be mentally prepared for things that could happen on the aircraft.”
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Pollak told Channel 9 she’ll be ready but hopes passengers won’t cause any issues in the future.
“Just be respectful,” she said. “Just be nice and just know we are doing our jobs.”
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