Lawsuit blames Southwest’s famous seating policy for the cruel sexual abuse of a child by a pedophile on one of its flights

In a lawsuit against Southwest Airlines, the group boarding procedure and seat reservation without fixed seats, which have been known for decades, are blamed for the brutal sexual assault of a 16-year-old boy by a registered pedophile on one of the flights.

The incident dates back to July 2022, but a lawsuit has only now been filed against Southwest Airlines in a California district court, accusing the airline of negligence for failing to protect the child.

Following a similar incident in 2019, the lawsuit alleges that Southwest Airlines must have known that its seating policy put children at risk by separating them from their parents and often placing them in middle seats between two adults.

While Southwest settled the case, it did not change its seating policies, resulting in “another minor being terrorized and repeatedly sexually assaulted by an intoxicated male passenger at 30,000 feet,” the lawsuit states.

The incident occurred on July 4, 2022, when Zaine Hahn and his father were traveling from San Diego to Portland for a family celebration. Their travel schedule included a change of planes in Las Vegas, and it was here that father and son became separated.

The couple had been assigned to Southwest’s boarding group C, which meant they were among the last passengers to board the plane and could take the remaining seats.

Zaine ended up in a middle seat between two men at the back of the plane, while his father had to sit much further forward and out of his son’s line of sight.

Zaine’s aisle seatmate “stank of alcohol” and grabbed Zaine’s legs several times before grabbing his face and attempting to kiss him. The lawsuit also alleges that the perpetrator attempted to put his hands inside Zaine’s shorts and grab his genitals outside of his shorts.

The sexual assault continued for the remainder of the flight, with the perpetrator attempting to put his hands down the victim’s shorts while the flight attendants went about their duties without intervening.

Zaine was completely overwhelmed by what had happened and was afraid of what the perpetrator would do if he called for help.

Only after the plane finally landed and they got off was the victim finally able to return to his family, where he burst into tears and described the details of what had just happened to him.

The lawsuit accuses Southwest of negligence, saying the company failed to prevent a “foreseeable risk” that the victim faced because he was “trapped in a middle seat next to the intoxicated offender.”

Interestingly, Southwest Airlines may consider changing its open seating policy, with details to be announced in September, but this is a larger attempt to increase the airline’s profitability as it loses ground service to other established carriers.

Southwest Airlines is under increasing pressure to improve its share price. Activist investor Elliott is buying up shares in the airline in an effort to replace Southwest’s top management.

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