A female passenger is being hailed a hero after a viral video shows her taking charge of a harrowing situation on a Delta flight from Atlanta to Tucson.
The video, first posted on TikTok by user @amorfatitestlab shows a Black woman standing over a white woman whose arms are tied behind her back with a makeshift restraint. The technique is referred to as a hogtie.
According to the passengers in the video, the white woman ran from the back of the plane to the front and attempted to open emergency exit doors and the cockpit doors.
In a follow-up video, both posted by the Black woman’s son, he says his mother, who was sitting in first class, gave the passenger “an a–– whupping she won’t forget.”
The TikToker, whose real name is Tyrique Perry, said the disruptive passenger tried to break into the cockpit and open emergency exit doors mid-flight.
The woman reportedly “overpowered the stewards,” while male passengers hesitated to intervene. The woman was heard shouting, “God will protect me” and “The Lord is my shepherd.”
According to Perry, his mother ultimately “had to take matters into her own hands to protect herself and all the other passengers on board.”
Nicole Pruitt, a retired U.S. Army veteran who lives in Arizona, was trained for moments like this.
“This chick came all the way from the— back,” Pruitt recalls.
She said, “I don’t want to be on the plane.” “God got my –” she said.
What has she said? She said, “I have a calling and God told me to do it.”
God tell you to do what? You are there to find out.
No, I want this f— and find out.
“I had an earpiece in my ear. I put that— in my little seat pocket right there.”
I said, “Please. Excuse me,” I said. “I’m gonna beat her a— right now.”
Although the passenger’s intentions weren’t made clear, many online believe Pruitt may have stopped a terroristic act or threat. Some are calling on Mama Nicky, as she is affectionately known, to be awarded for her bravery.
“Come on, Delta! She needs lifetime first-class tickets!!!!! She LITERALLY saved everyone!!” One TikTok viewer wrote. “As a flight attendant, it is people like Mama Nicky that we are eternally grateful for!!!!
Atlanta Black Star has reached out to Perry for comment.
FOX 5 Atlanta reports that a Delta flight from Atlanta to Tucson was forced to make a return to Hartsfield-Jackson after a passenger caused a mid-air scare.
Flight 937 had been in the air for about an hour on July 16 when, according to a Delta spokesperson, a customer “situation” prompted the flight crew to turn the plane around and head back to Atlanta.
When the plane landed back in Atlanta, emergency medical personnel met the flight upon landing. Law enforcement was notified, but the person was not arrested.
Delta later resumed the flight to Tucson, arriving nearly three hours behind schedule. There were 180 people on the plane, including the crew members and pilots.
“Delta sincerely appreciates the actions of our crew and customers for deescalating this situation,” said airline spokesperson, Samantha Moore Facteau, to Atlanta Black Star in a statement.
