Southwest Passenger Has Epic Tantrum Over Crying Child, Cursing and Screaming, Before Being Removed by Police

A passenger aboard a Southwest Airlines flight went viral after having a meltdown over a crying baby onboard. The man was filmed screaming and swearing at the parents of the child, leading online commenters to opine that he was causing a bigger ruckus than the baby.

The man rebuffed attempts by flight attendants and other passengers to calm him down, as he complained that the baby had been crying nonstop for 45 minutes. And it was all caught on video. Read on to find out what happened during the flight and when it finally landed.

"Just Out of Nowhere"

The drama began when the flight, due for Fort Lauderdale, Florida, was rerouted to Orlando because of bad weather. "It was a little bumpy and uncomfortable for everyone, and the child was upset, but we couldn't get up because of the weather, and we were strapped in our seats," Mark Grabowski, a passenger on the flight who recorded the video, told Fox 35.

"Just out of nowhere, this other passenger in the video basically said shut that baby up, and it escalated from there," he added.

Angry, Profane Rant Caught on Video

In the video, the man goes on a high-volume diatribe directed at the parents of the unhappy tot. "There is a child crying on the flight, non-stop," he shouted. "Calm the child down, please. I'm not screaming. Do you want me to scream? I'll scream! We are in a tin can with a baby in a goddamn echo chamber, and you wanna talk to me about being OK?"

He then asked a flight attendant, "Can you calm the child down, please? I had headphones on. I was sleeping." "Let's be rational for a second," said another flight attendant.  "No, no, no, no, no, no," the man said.

"I'm Triggered!"

@mjgrabowski♬ original sound – bad_ideas_galore

A flight attendant is seen attempting to defuse the situation, telling the angry passenger, "Sir, you are yelling." "So is the baby!" the man replied.  The man was not swayed when the flight attendant noted the difference between infants and adults.

"Did he pay extra to yell? Shut up." When the staffer asked him to lower his voice, he shouted, "Can you lower THAT voice? Lower that baby's voice. I'm triggered!"

Flight Evacuated in Orlando

Passengers are seen trying to calm the man, and the flight attendant seems to ask him to tone down the swearing. "I know an attorney just like you, I got rights. If I hadn't have said anything, we would be sitting on this flight with a kid crying for 45 minutes," he shouted. When the plane landed in Orlando, the man refused to depart, forcing the entire flight to be evacuated.

He was later seen in the terminal, surrounded by authorities and continuing to protest loudly. Afterward, he was escorted through the airport by police.  Orlando Police refused to comment on the incident, and it's unclear if the man is facing any charges.

Airline Responds

Southwest Airlines told Today.com in a statement: "We do not have details on this flight to share but commend our flight crew for their professionalism and offer our apologies to the other customers onboard."

"We appreciate the patience of our other customers onboard who had to experience the unacceptable behavior," the airline said in a statement to USA Today. "From the video, it appears the flight was holding due to weather, allowing the crew to remove the passenger prior to departure," a Southwest spokesperson said later.

Eyewitness Reacts

Monique Pass of North Providence, Rhode Island, was on the flight. She told local station WJAR the experience was anxiety-inducing. "I was panicking and having a panic attack because we're stuck in the air," said Pass.

"We don't know if we can land. We're running out of gas. This little girl in front of me screaming bloody murder at the top of her lungs, and this guy is getting violent." "I don't want to go through that again," she concluded.