A routine flight on Spirit Airlines turned into a nightmare for one passenger when she spotted a swarm of cockroaches scurrying across the cabin’s walls.
Symone Berry, a passenger on a Spirit Airlines flight from Miami to Tampa, was shocked when she saw multiple cockroaches scaling the walls of the plane’s cabin shortly after takeoff.
The appalling incident, which occurred on Sunday, was captured in a video that Berry shared online. The footage quickly went viral, sparking outrage and disbelief among viewers disturbed by the unsettling sight.
‘Today was my first and last day flying Spirit,’ Berry says in the now-viral video.
‘There were multiple roaches on my plane, and the flight attendants did not care whatsoever.’
At first, Berry, who had purchased the flight as a last-minute option to visit her mother for Mother’s Day, noticed a single roach crawling up the wall. Though grotesque, she hoped the problem would resolve itself.
‘The first roach I saw was right in front of me,’ Berry recalled, adding that she bought a ‘big seat.’
‘As you can see, this roach is huge and it keeps climbing up and it keeps going up until it goes over the wall. At this time I didn’t say anything to the flight attendant because I figured you know, maybe it is going to go away.’
However, it wasn’t long before the grossed-out passenger spotted another ‘big roach’ crawling inside her seat, heading toward the plane’s emergency exit. That’s when she decided to alert the flight attendants.
‘That’s when I started to talk to the flight attendant and say, ‘Hey, there are roaches in here. Is there something we can do to clean it up?”
The crew member’s response, according to Berry, was less than helpful.
‘He just gasped audibly and said he didn’t know what to do,’ Berry recalled in an interview with People.
In the video, she is seen pointing out the insects as they scuttle across the cabin. Some of the roaches even crawl onto the seat backs, while others climb across the walls and make their way toward the ceiling.
Still on the flight, Berry posted videos of the insects to X, formerly Twitter, which quickly gained traction.
Many pointed out that such an issue is especially troubling for an airline that markets itself as a budget-friendly travel option.
’10 years ago, I made a decision to never fly with them,’ one user wrote on X. ‘These roaches are not new to this, they look too comfortable, they’re in the Spirit lol.’
Another user added, ‘This would be my version of hell, omg.’
‘Paying for a Spirit Airlines ticket at this point is willful stupidity. You are paying for inconvenience and filth,’ another commented.
Others jokingly quipped, ‘Spirit Airlines turning into a whole new adventure – bugs included for free with your ticket!’
Spirit Airlines later reached out to Berry in response to her horrifying initial post, though she claims the response was automated.
‘I DM’d them immediately around 7:50 am, and they kept sending the same automated message,’ she said. ‘Four hours later, someone else responded. I gave them my flight information, and later that night, I received an email offering a $60 credit.’
Spirit Airlines has since issued a statement apologizing for the situation and confirming that the plane underwent a thorough inspection.
A Spirit Airlines spokesperson confirmed that their team is ‘aware of the video’ and the airline’s ‘maintenance team thoroughly inspected the aircraft involved and addressed the issue,’ in a statement to People.
‘We maintain high standards of cleanliness across our fleet and want all of our guests to feel comfortable when traveling with us,’ the statement added.
Despite the airline’s apology, Berry remains shaken by the experience. She emphasized that while occasional issues can happen, the fact that passengers were allowed to endure a flight with visible cockroaches was unacceptable.
In a follow-up TikTok, the popular content creator reaffirmed that she would ‘never fly Spirit again,’ calling it a ‘one and done’ experience.
DailyMail.com has reached out to Spirit Airlines for comment.
Berry’s negative experience is far from unique – many other Spirit Airlines passengers have taken to social media to share their own ‘horror stories,’ calling out the budget carrier for similar issues.
One user on X claimed the airline ‘destroyed’ his bag and sent it to the wrong destinaiton.
Another wrote the embattled airline, surfacing complaints over a broken stroller, as the dissapointed passenger alleged the airline returned her stroller – which she claims was ‘only used once’ – broken and in pieces.
Meanwhile, another unsatisfied passenger called out the airline for not having proper staffing for a scheduled flight. The passenger claimed there was ‘no pilot or co-pilot’ for his flight.