A sacked senior flight attendant Alan O’Neill faced accusations at the Workplace Relations Commission of refusing a passenger toilet access on a delayed flight from Marseille to Dublin on 9 April 2024.
The attendant refused a passenger bathroom access during refuelling which led to a confrontation and passenger distress.
Other crew members described the senior attendant as aggressive and expressed fear of approaching him. A manager testified that the response created an unsafe environment and breached crew resource management duties.
The airline terminated O’Neill for gross misconduct after an investigation triggered by a customer complaint.
Colleagues Claire Durkan and Joan O’Gorman gave evidence that the passenger became upset and cried halfway through the return journey after repeated refusals.
The incident began during refuelling when the passenger requested the toilet and muttered under his breath after refusal on safety grounds.
Mr O’Neill issued a formal Dip 1 warning to the passenger and conditioned further toilet access on provision of a boarding pass according to witness accounts.
The hearing continued for additional days with Mr O’Neill not expected to give evidence until later in the year.
Mary McHugh shared “Alan was getting angrier throughout the flight, which was creating an unsafe environment. Nobody was happy on that flight. It just saddened me that there was such a breakdown in CRM.”
Claire Durkan shared “No, but there are times – it’s a human right to use the toilet; if someone needs to use the toilet, you’re not going to tell them no. If I know the situation is safe.”
Joan O’Gorman shared “I could see him coming down the aisle. He was crying.”
