The rise of camera phones has shown some troubling behavior in America’s travel industry. Unruly passengers on commercial flights seem to make headlines frequently. For instance, Tiffany Gomas became widely known for shouting about a person who “isn’t real” during a flight from Dallas to Orlando three years ago. Similarly, Maxwell Berry gained attention after he was duct-taped to his seat for groping flight attendants and hitting another. There have also been incidents involving intoxicated individuals and those using racial slurs mid-flight.
Saturday Night Live poked fun at these airline disturbances in their sketch titled ‘Delta Disruptive.’ In the pre-recorded segment, Ashley Padilla, playing Delta’s director of in-flight service, announces a new area on the plane meant for unruly passengers, called Delta Disruptive. She describes how the airline aims to keep flights safe and enjoyable but acknowledges the rise in disruptive behavior.
The sketch includes host Inde Navarrete portraying a character reminiscent of Gomas, who believes she sees shadowy figures and wears pants that reveal too much. Cast member Mikey Day plays a man who mishandles the overhead bins and attempts to open an emergency exit. Other characters include Tommy Brennan, who reads Mein Kampf in the disruptive section, and Sarah Sherman, who gets taped to a chair for trying to stab someone with a pen.
Padilla reassures viewers that those in the other sections of the plane will be safe since the flight attendants in Delta Disruptive are described as tough and experienced. In a humorous moment, Kennan Thompson tries to regain control by throwing an emotional support lizard out of the emergency exit.
The sketch raises a relevant question about airline behavior: Are passengers becoming more disruptive, or has this been an issue all along, only now captured on video? The Federal Aviation Administration reports that incidents have increased for nearly ten years. In 2017, there were 544 reports of unruly passengers; by 2021, that number soared to 5,973, largely due to mask mandates. So far in 2026, there have been over 1,400 reports, which is a decrease from the significant rise in 2021.
Several factors contribute to the increase in unruliness among passengers, according to NPR. Planes are more crowded than in the past, increasing stress during boarding and reducing comfort. Moreover, there has been a rise in alcohol consumption mixed with medications, and, in the post-pandemic environment, people seem to have less patience.
As these disturbances continue, one might wonder if the number of outbursts on flights will decline. Would the Delta Disruptive section go from being a comedic idea to an actual space passengers must pass through?
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Source: Upworthy, by Tod Perry