‘Entitled’ Mother-Daughter Duo Delays Flight After Refusing to Gate Check Their Bags

A woman recently shared her frustrating travel experience involving two “entitled” passengers who delayed a flight for everyone on board.

Posting in Reddit’s “Entitled People” forum, she recounted a flight she took about a year ago while returning from a bachelorette party. What should have been a routine trip was derailed by a mother and daughter who refused to gate-check their carry-on luggage.

According to her post, the flight was completely full, and airline staff were encouraging passengers to gate-check their bags before boarding. Thanks to her husband upgrading her boarding pass, she was able to board early and managed to store her carry-on in the last available overhead compartment—one that a flight attendant promptly closed.

“As more groups boarded the plane, the flight attendants repeatedly announced that the closed overhead compartments were full and directed people to find space elsewhere,” she wrote. By the time boarding was nearly complete, there appeared to be no overhead space left.

That didn’t stop the pair of women from bringing their bags onboard anyway.

“The older woman opens the overhead bin above me and scoffs when she sees it’s full. She says something like, ‘Our bags need to go here,’” the poster recounted. “She then opens the compartment across the aisle and scoffs again after finding it’s also full.”

When a flight attendant told her to stop opening bins, a heated exchange followed. The woman insisted she needed space above her own seat. After the flight attendant stepped away to assist another passenger, the woman reopened the overhead compartment, removed the original poster’s bag, and left it in the aisle to make room for her own.

“The flight attendant comes back immediately and says, ‘You can’t do that, ma’am. You need to find another place for your bag,’” the poster continued. The woman claimed she had a tight connection and needed quick access to her luggage for an international flight.

“Now I’m thinking this lady is an idiot,” the poster wrote. “A) She could’ve paid $30 to upgrade her boarding group like I had, and B) She should’ve booked an earlier flight if she had a connection to make.”

When it became clear there was no overhead space left, flight attendants told the mother and daughter they would need to gate-check their bags and fill out the necessary forms. But the older woman refused to cooperate, prolonging the delay.

“Between all the back-and-forth, the paperwork, and more staff getting involved, they delayed the flight by about 20 minutes,” she added.

Once the flight finally landed, the pilot asked that passengers with tight connections be allowed to deplane first.

“Once we land, it’s a free-for-all 🤣. Everyone who can get up does, and I’m just laughing, thinking there’s no way these entitled women are making their flight. Even if they do, their bags won’t,” she concluded.

Fellow Reddit users weighed in with their own thoughts and experiences, highlighting the irony of the situation.

“She has a tight connection, so she delays the flight by 20 extra minutes. Best of luck emulating Usain Bolt to make your next flight,” one commenter joked.

Another wrote, “Absolute chaos. Imagine holding up a whole flight and still thinking you’re in the right. Touching someone else’s bag? That’s wild. Hope karma met them at the next gate.”

Others chimed in with similar travel nightmares, emphasizing how disruptive behavior can turn flying into a miserable experience for everyone.