Creepy man wouldn't stop disturbing teen on plane. Her mom's escape plan kept her safe until the very end
Flying is often seen as a routine part of travel, with most people expecting a quiet, uneventful trip. Unfortunately, not every flight goes smoothly, especially for young women traveling alone or with family. One teenager, Megriella Moose, recently shared her disturbing experience on a flight, using her TikTok account, @megriellamoose, to raise awareness about in-flight harassment and how her mother stepped in to protect her. Her story has since resonated with thousands online, shedding light on the discomfort many passengers silently endure.
In the video, with the onscreen text, "Women—stay safe on planes and trust your gut," Moose explained that a man seated next to her began acting inappropriately not long after the flight took off. "Then as we get up in the air, he starts to get kind of touchy, starts spreading his legs to where his leg is touching mine," she recalls. She shared how she was minding her own business, reading her book, when the man kept initiating a conversation. "Hey! I am trying to read my book, I really need to focus," shared Moose as the man continued to disturb her. As a flight attendant came to take their order, he again attempted a conversation, "He taps me and looks me directly in the face and leans over where his face is like two inches from mine." After Moose's countless declines to his offer for a drink, the man proceeded to consume several alcoholic beverages himself.
She noticed that his behavior grew more intrusive as the flight went on, and she decided to message her parents asking about issuing a yellow alert on the man. Her parents instantly asked if she wished to switch her seats, but Moose remained calm and said, "No." The situation took a disturbing turn when, while fastening his seatbelt, the man deliberately grabbed her thigh. "He moves his hand so far onto my seat and under my thigh...that was the moment like okay red alert, can we switch?" she shares. Quietly and calmly, she switched seats with her mother, who was also traveling with her. "We were trying to downplay the situation. I did not want to cause a scene." A flight attendant noticed the change and asked the teen why she had moved. She told the crew member about the man’s behavior, to which she expressed her relief and also shared a safety tip. "You can write a note on your napkin, press the call button, and get a flight attendant, and we will help you out."
But the man didn’t stop there. Once her mother took her seat, he began bothering her too, and even elbowed the mother to grab her attention after she ignored the man several times. He then drops questions like, "Are you going to have me arrested?" to which she responds with a "no". He proceeded with awkward comments like, “Your daughter was awesome, I'm gonna talk to her again after we get off the plane.” Realizing the situation could escalate even further, she sent her daughter a text instructing her to go wait in the bathroom near baggage claim. After landing, Moose, her mother, and her stepsister all waited together in the airport bathroom, avoiding the man until they were certain it was safe to leave. Only when they received a message from her father that the man wasn’t nearby did they step out and exit the airport. The mother's calm response kept her daughter safe until they reached their destination.
@megriellamoose thank you to @Southwest Airlines flight attendants for helping me know what to do if i’m in a situation like this again. hope this helps someone out, although i hope this doesn’t happen to anyone else. this experience now may make me an aisle seat sitter #airplanesafety #womenssafety #preparedness ♬ original sound - megriella moose
For more content on women's safety and personal experiences, follow @megriellamoose on her TikTok account.