By JOAN FLEISCHMAN
[email protected]
Something special in the air: an amusing American Airlines training video in which a Miami-based flight attendant demonstrates his techniques for getting even with passengers who ticked him off.
A 7-minute, 40-second clip from the 20-minute video is now at the center of a federal copyright infringement case. The airline, which owns the copyright to the video, asked that subpoenas be issued to Google and YouTube.com to determine the identity of the person who uploaded the clip to the Web, according to articles in The San Jose Mercury News and The Dallas Morning News.
This exclusive just in: The mystery uploader is Gailen David, 38, of Coconut Grove, who has flown for AA for 19 years. David says the airline paid him to write the script for the video, based on his transformation from angry air steward to upbeat employee. David also co-stars in the video.
Last month, David posted the clip on YouTube.com and Google Video so family and friends could watch. He says he didn't realize it would generate outside interest and links. On YouTube, it drew 6,600 hits in 48 hours, he says.
In the video, David fesses up to surly and spiteful behavior toward passengers he deemed difficult and disrespectful. But, he says, he wasn't that way when he joined AA in '87.
From the video: ''Don't you remember how perky we all were when we started? How proud we were to wear the uniform? I mean, the gold wings, the perfect tie, the starched shirt.'' He would report to work early ''just to let people look at me.'' Eventually, hostility set in. ''I even wondered if the passengers and the company were working together to make my life miserable.''
On the video, he shows how he punished a man in first-class who yammered on a cellphone during ''pre-departure'' service, ignoring David's beverage offer. David used the ''two-second rule'' -- the passenger didn't respond in two secs, so David ignored him the entire flight. ''I let the whole crew know -- this passenger is mine. Do not answer any of his questions or get him anything. . . . I wore myself out torturing this man.''
In 1999, David took a 10-month leave and underwent therapy. He returned to flying with an attitude adjustment -- toward customer appreciation, he says. At AA hubs, he held workshops for flight attendants, as well as reservation and ticket agents.
On the training video, he tells co-workers that a positive approach can make a difference: ''No matter what American Airlines does as far as marketing, it all comes back to us -- the employees.''
On Feb. 21, David received an e-mail from Google Video Support: ''Google was notified that your video Flight Attendant allegedly violates the copyright of others. . . . We are removing the video in question.''
Then came a Feb. 28 e-mail from Google Legal Support: ''Google has received a civil subpoena for information related to your Google Video account in a case entitled American Airlines v. Jane Doe. . . . To comply with the law, Google intends to provide responsive documents, unless you inform us immediately that you have filed a motion to quash the subpoena or other formal objection.'' The suit is filed in Texas, where AA is based.
David says he also received an email from YouTube, informing him that it yanked the video.
David says he didn't respond to the e-mails. ''I was scared.''
American Airlines spokesman Tim Wagner says the video was intended for internal use and that the issue is to protect airline property. ''Nobody can use copyrighted material without permission.'' Wagner won't discuss what action might be taken. ''We'll protect the privacy of our employee.''
David says he didn't mean to ruffle AA's feathers and doesn't want his wings clipped. ''An innocent mistake.'' Besides, he says: ''I want people to know that I'm trying to get employees to be nice to passengers.''