A California woman who says she was trapped beside a masturbating passenger on a United Airlines red-eye has spoken out about the airline’s handling of the incident.
Genevieve Pascolla, who was flying first class from San Diego to Newark, told NBC 7 she paid extra for the upgraded seat so she could recline and sleep through the overnight trip. Instead, she said, she spent the flight frozen in horror after noticing the man beside her watching pornography and making jerking motions beneath his blanket.
“I didn’t know what to do,” she said. “I was frozen. Horrified…I’m essentially trapped in the window seat. I would have to climb over him because he’s got his seat fully reclined in order to get out.”
Pascolla said she alerted a flight attendant, but the crew member initially did not ask whether she was okay or offer to move her. She eventually requested a seat change herself after texting with friends during the flight.
“I’m having a trauma response of fawning, which is I’m trying to make it as easy as possible for these two women to help me,” she said of her interaction with the attendants. “And in order to do that, I am apologizing to them and trying to make them feel comfortable helping me.”
The crew did relocate her, switching her seat with another passenger. But Pascolla said the man was allowed to deplane without any law enforcement confrontation waiting at the gate.
Several days passed before she was told to contact the FBI, she said, and that instruction came only during a follow-up call with United customer service. Airlines are not legally required to report passenger sexual misconduct to police or federal authorities.
United offered her a choice of either $1,000 in travel credit or 50,000 miles as compensation, according to a customer service call recording she shared with the outlet. Pascolla said she accepted the miles.
United Airlines said in a statement: “We take this issue seriously. We spoke with the customer and apologized for her experience. We have also banned the other person involved pending our investigation.”
The FBI’s guidance to passengers who encounter unwanted sexual behavior on flights includes moving away from the seat immediately and explicitly telling crew members they do not feel safe and need to be relocated. Women traveling alone are advised to select aisle seats when possible.
Pascolla’s account adds to ongoing scrutiny of how U.S. Carriers respond to in-flight sexual misconduct, with critics arguing that crew training and reporting protocols remain inconsistent across the industry.