The incident occurred after the passenger was declined a refund.
On July 6, a passenger was taken into custody at Mexico City International Airport (MEX). The passenger, a 56-year-old woman, went on a rampage at the ticket counter. The incident involved the passenger, Maria Guadalupe, destroying the ticket counter at the airport.
The destruction of property in Mexico City
A cellphone video showed Maria Guadalupe standing on top of the baggage scale near a Volaris ticket counter and throwing a computer screen onto the ground a smashing it. Guadalupe allegedly lost control of her emotions after a flight reservation that she had booked through a travel agency was not showing up in the Volaris system.
A Volaris employee informed Guadalupe that she would need to contact the travel agency that she already booked the flight with in order to get her refund back. Once the employee told Guadalupe this, she lost her temper. She continued arguing with workers and even threw a barcode scanner on the ground in front of an array of passengers. She then began destroying the baggage counter by slamming a computer screen and keyboard into the ground.
During the incident, Guadalupe was heard yelling obscenities at the airline employees. Allegedly, the passenger yelled at an employee, saying,
“Don’t give me my money back, I don’t give a damn. But this is going to cost you.”
Shortly after slamming the equipment, Guadalupe was escorted away from the baggage counter. Allegedly, she attempted to flee the airport, but auxiliary police agents met her before she could leave the area. She was then placed in custody. Volaris would end up pressing charges against Guadalupe for her destruction of property as well as disturbing the peace.
An incident in Volaris’ home
The Mexico-based airline frequents Mexico City International Airport. However, an incident is not common for the low-cost airline, especially in the country it is headquartered in. Last year, the airline became the first company in the country’s history to carry over 30 million passengers.
Volaris overall has been thriving so far this year, showing continued growth from the COVID-19 pandemic. The airline started the month of June with a 15% growth compared to 2022. Volaris carried over 10 million passengers between January and April. The airline was looking to break its own record that it set in 2022.
The airline also recently announced the addition of 40 new domestic routes throughout Mexico. These routes, announced in May of this year, were mostly point-to-point routes, increasing regional connectivity. The new services will include twelve new routes in Guanajuato and ten new routes to Baja California. Additionally, 33 of these routes are exclusive and not flown by any other airline.
Volaris continued to work towards expansion, as it was disclosed as a customer that ordered 25 Airbus A321neos back in October 2022. The Volaris President and Chief Executive Officer, Enrique Beltranena, stated that the amount of aircraft on order shows the airline’s “financial strength and will guarantee our growth in the Mexican market as well as in routes to the United States and Central America.”
Source: Simple Fliying
