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Neel Elsherif is suing American Airlines, alleging they failed to act after a man masturbated next to her for an hour.
Elsherif claims a flight attendant dismissed her concerns, saying, “Men just do stuff like that”.
The lawsuit accuses the airline of negligence, discrimination, and prioritising the man’s comfort over Elsherif’s.
A company CEO is suing American Airlines, claiming they failed to intervene after she was trapped for an hour next to a masturbating man, alleging a flight attendant told her “men just do stuff like that”.
Neel Elsherif, a Harvard Business School graduatewho heads up multiple companies, was travelling from New York to Milan in premium economy in May 2024 when she “suffered a disturbing and traumatic experience”.
The lawsuit, filed in the US District Court’s Eastern District of New York, states that an “intoxicated, caucasian male passenger seated next to her brazenly masturbated for approximately 60 minutes during the flight”.
The complaint goes on to say that the man, named in the lawsuit only as John Doe, was served multiple glasses of champagne during the first hour of the flight and then, soon after the lights were dimmed, began “rubbing his genitals over his pants”.
“When this rubbing did not stop, but instead intensified, [Elsherif] realised that John Doe was masturbating next to her,” the complaint states.
American CEO Neel Elsherif.
Elsherif was in the window seat and the lawsuit details that she “froze in her seat” upon realising what the man was doing, hoping that flight attendants would notice and intervene.
“John Doe continued to masturbate … for approximately 60 minutes, and during that time neither the Flight Attendant nor another AA crew member walked through the Premium Economy cabin,” the complaint states.
When he eventually stopped, Elsherif claims she sought out a flight attendant who dismissed her concerns, allegedly telling her: “Men just do stuff like that” and adding that her own husband “did stuff like that”.
She claims she was told it was her that would have to move and was offered a seat back in economy.
Upon taking her seat she claims she saw crew continuing to offer drinks to the man.
The lawsuit claims that Elsherif was “expected to endure such grotesque misconduct” which reinforced the “pernicious and unlawful stereotype that women must tolerate male predation as a fact of life”.
It also claims she was discriminated against because she is an Arab woman and John Doe and the flight attendant were both white.
“The flight attendant gave John Doe preferential treatment over [her], and treated John Doe’s safety, comfort and convenience more importantly than [hers], because John Doe is a white male,” the complaint alleges.
Elsherif accuses American Airlines of “negligence, discrimination, and intentional infliction of emotional distress”.
In a statement released to the New York Post, American Airlines said they were reviewing the allegations.
“American strives to provide a positive experience to everyone who travels with us. We are reviewing the allegations of the complaint.”
