Virgin Atlantic passenger claims she was sent sexually harassing messages via plane's chat system
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}A plane passenger — who works as a legal analyst on sexual assault, harassment and discrimination cases — has claimed on Twitter that she was the victim of sexual harassment aboard a recent Virgin Atlantic flight.
Jessica Van Meir, who is from Atlanta but living in the U.K., wrote of the alleged incident, which reportedly happened Saturday, on her social media page.
AMSTERDAM-BOUND FLIGHT MAKES EMERGENCY LANDING IN MAINE
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}According to Van Meir, she was in her seat when someone else on the flight messaged her using the plane’s seat-to-seat messaging function.
“Yesterday I was on a @VirginAtlantic flight, and I unexpectedly received these sexually harassing messages on my screen (I was in 55C). The flight attendants were helpful and dealt with it swiftly,” she wrote, along with a question asking if other women had experienced the same thing.
In the post, Van Meir uploaded photos of the harassing messages, which begin with someone in 61D referring to her seat number – 55C – and calling her a “tidy babe.”
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
Another passenger, with the screenname "big d--- swinger" in seat 63D, sent two smiling wink emoji, while another named "dirty mike" in 62G wrote “welcome to hell.”
Van Meir responded to the group, informing them she works for “a law firm that specializes in online sexual harassment."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"Enjoy being reported to Virgin," she wrote.
Jessica Van Meir, who is from Atlanta but living in the U.K., wrote of the alleged incident, which reportedly happened on a Virgin Atlantic flight Saturday. (iStock)
In a statement to Fox News, a representative for the airline said it is looking into the matter.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP FOR OUR LIFESTYLE NEWSLETTER
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}“We were extremely concerned to hear of the incident reported on-board one of our flights and are investigating as a matter of urgency. We want all of our customers to have the best possible experience when they fly with us, and have zero tolerance for any disruptive or inappropriate behavior.
“We’re grateful to our cabin crew who supported our customer following this incident and would like to apologize for the distress caused. We are now reviewing our entertainment systems to ensure this does not happen again,” the statement read.
FOLLOW US ON FACEBOOK FOR MORE FOX LIFESTYLE NEWS
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Virgin’s seat-to-seat chat allows passengers to message each other across the plane. It can reportedly also be used to order drinks and snacks from flight crew. However, Virgin has said the program is currently being phased out of all aircraft.