ATLANTA— A Delta Air Lines (DL) passenger received a disturbing surprise on a recent Red Eye flight when she woke from a nap to find her open purse had been used as a makeshift sick bag by her seatmate. The incident took place during a roughly two-and-a-half-hour flight between Minneapolis-St Paul (MSP) and Boise (BOI).
The woman, seated in the second row of First Class, had slept through the event and only discovered the mess minutes before landing. Her wallet, hat, AirPods, and other belongings were soaked in vomit, and Delta later offered her a $50 credit as an apology.
Delta Flyer Find Her Purse with Vomit
The passenger had been trying to rest during the overnight flight and remained unaware that the man seated directly in front of her had become physically ill.
According to her account, he had been sick down the sidewall of the aircraft, and a significant amount of the vomit landed in her purse, which sat open on the cabin floor throughout the flight.
As reported by PYOK, the situation came to light only in the final minutes of the journey. “About 5 mins before the flight landed, I pulled my open purse into my lap from under the seat in front of me and realized there was vomit in and on my purse (and now all over me),” the woman wrote in a Reddit post that later went viral.
She attempted to alert the cabin crew, but received no response. She pressed the call button and verbally raised the issue, yet the flight attendant did not move. With the aircraft already on approach, the crew remained at their jumpseats, as anything short of a full emergency would not prompt them to get up during landing.
No Accountability From the Seatmate
Once the aircraft landed, the seatmate responsible for the mess quickly left the plane and took no responsibility for the damage he had caused.
The passenger was left to deal with ruined belongings, including her AirPods, which had slipped onto the floor and into the puddle of vomit.
After the flight, one of the flight attendants admitted to the passenger that she had seen the man vomiting against the sidewall. The crew member said she had been unsure where the vomit was going, which is why she did not step in to help.
Delta’s Response and Compensation
The passenger submitted a complaint to Delta once she returned home. The airline responded by offering her a $50 credit as compensation for the experience.
This figure appears to align with how other carriers have handled similar incidents. British Airways (BA) offered a passenger £50 after he was covered in vomit by a heavily intoxicated traveler on an overnight flight to Johannesburg (JNB). That passenger, Bruce McKenzie, blamed the airline, claiming its cabin crew had served the offending traveler 10 miniature bottles of Bacardi in quick succession.
British Airways responded by saying its “cabin crew follow strict procedures regarding alcohol service and disruptive behaviour,” while acknowledging that some situations escalate despite the crew’s best efforts.
A Pattern Across the Industry
Even a small credit can be more than some travelers receive. Frontier Airlines (F9) offered nothing to a passenger whose carry-on bag was soaked in urine by the person seated in front of them during a June 2025 flight.
The Denver (DEN) based carrier pointed to its contract of carriage, which states the airline is not liable for damage to carry-on baggage unless caused by its own fault or negligence, and declined to provide compensation.
In the Delta case, many travelers raised an additional concern. Several passengers noted that the airline does not appear to be keeping its seatback pockets stocked with sick bags, which may have contributed to the situation.
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