Flight Attendant Sues Southwest Airlines After Finding Hidden Bathroom Cameras

Southwest Airlines flight attendant Renee Steinaker has filed a lawsuit against the airline after she allegedly caught two pilots streaming footage from a camera hidden in the airplane’s bathroom, the New York Post reports. 

In her lawsuit, Steinaker claims that she discovered the cameras during a flight from Pittsburgh to Phoenix in February 2017. She explains that pilot, Capt. Terry Graham, was following Southwest policy by asking her to come to the cockpit so that he could use the restroom. When she got to the cockpit, Steinaker realized that there was an iPad on the windshield that was live-streaming the bathroom.  

Stienaker alleges that Graham’s co-pilot, Ryan Russell, “panicked” when she discovered the device. Russell told her that it was a part of the company’s new security protocol. Stienaker wasn’t convinced: She took pictures of the iPad and told her superiors once the flight landed.

“They led her to believe that she and others had been filmed — had been videotaped if you will — while they were using the lavatory,” Steinaker attorney, Ronald L.M. Goldman, told the Arizona Republic. “It’s really hard to imagine a more outrageous kind of conduct.”

This prompted Southwest to issue a statement to the Arizona Central in which it explains that putting cameras in the bathroom could be a breach of privacy and safety.

“The safety and security of our employees and customers is Southwest’s uncompromising priority,” the statement reads. “As such, Southwest does not place cameras in the lavatories of our aircraft. At this time, we have no other comment on the pending litigation.”