A United passenger tried to use the bathroom and shook the handle for 30 seconds before looking up and realizing it was the cockpit

A United Airlines passenger recently found herself in an incredibly awkward spot after mistaking the cockpit door for the airplane lavatory. The incident occurred on a flight from Chicago to New York, leaving the traveler feeling quite embarrassed about her mid-air confusion.

The passenger, who goes by @babyapplefritter on TikTok, shared the story in a video that grabbed thousands of views. She started the clip with on-screen text that read, “If you were flying the 10am united flight from Chicago to New York I’m so sorry.” 

She explained that she saw someone walk out of a door, which led her to believe it was the bathroom and that the space was finally vacant. When she reached the door, it would not open, so she started shaking the handle. 

She kept shaking the handle for around 30 seconds

She kept at it for 30 seconds while looking down at the hardware. She admitted, “Today I was on a plane, and I tried to go to the bathroom, and I saw somebody walk out of it, so I knew it was vacant, except I couldn’t open the door, so I was shaking the handle… ” before confirming, “It was the cockpit.”

She further noted, “I shook it for like 30 seconds because I was like, ‘What the hell,’ and I was looking like straight down at the handle,” she continued. “There’s a sign directly in front of my face that said, like, ‘Authorized personnel only past this point,’ so I wonder if a pilot today thought that they were getting hijacked?” The passenger added a bit of context in the video description, mentioning, “To be fair I slept maybe one full hour last night.” 

People on the internet found the story hilarious, and the comments section was filled with jokes. One person suggested that airport bars are often trouble. Another commenter, who identified as a pilot, shared, “The pilots would be like ‘WTF is that noise’ and I’m talking from experience.”

It seems like this might be a more common occurrence than most travelers realize. A United flight attendant jumped into the conversation to say, “This happens more than you think haha.” Other commenters were just happy to laugh along with her, with one person writing, “I laughed a bit too hard,” and another remarking, “They probably thought it was the turbulence. Today was one of those days!” One person even joked, “I would’ve been arrested.”