What Holden said.
I've spent far too much of my life as SLF.
As with brain surgery and doing brake work on my truck, I want someone in command - not someone who's trying to make me happy.
I, personally, believe that the airline management is still mired in a 60's-style, glamourous-Jet-Set conception of air travel, and as a consequence, they have let customer-happiness issues get out of hand.
I've seen more than my share of spoiled, self-absorbed jackasses whining and snivelling like spoiled teenagers to try and get their way, or treating the crew like dirt, or throwing tantrums - and other things - in order that they may continue to use the airplane as their own private playground. Without wanting to use that hackneyed term whose initials are AR, I suggest that the rise in incidents of serious passenger misbehaviour is due - in part at least - to a management that is more interested in presenting a picture of "glamourous adventure through the skies for you, our valued guest" than it is in bursting the passenger's bubble and exposing the awful fact that air travel is now a common-carrier, price-driven business. And that the safety and security of the entire complement of souls on board is simply not a subject for negotiation based on how much you paid for your ticket.
As a sometime copper, I was once involved in helping the cabin crew subdue a passenger who was the worse for drink and behaving badly. I still recall one of the FA's (male) thanking me profusely, along the lines of "we could have handled it with no problem, but would have faced all sorts of questions and second-guessing from our management for man-handling a passenger in that way. All those questions go away when other passengers get involved."
Well, pardon me, but the folks in charge of making 100 tons of aluminum filled with people fly from one place to another should not have to be frightened of having their best judgement questioned, especially by some over-lawyered jackanapes or other. More power to captains who exercise their command authority seriously and deliberately, and it is only to be hoped that their example is followed by others.
llater,
llamas