S'pore influencer slammed for 'panic attack' video taken on SIA flight, later reveals she was SQ321 passenger
An influencer was slammed for being "fake" and "attention-seeking" after she posted a video of herself screaming on a Singapore Airlines (SIA) flight. She later revealed that the panic attack was triggered by trauma from a previous flight which encountered severe turbulence.
The influencer, Mia, was filming a "What I ate on the flight" video when she felt slight movements of the plane, which left her feeling uneasy.
Shortly after finishing her meal, the aircraft hit turbulence, causing her to panic and scream in distress.
The video, captioned "Full panic attack on a plane", was posted on Jan 12 and has racked up over 5,400,000 views, 326,000 reactions, and 7,000 comments.
"My pinkies up means I'm really scared," she said in the post, recalling that the cabin crew had just announced that the plane was going through turbulence.
Tucked in her blanket and wearing headphones, Mia was held by a hand from an adjacent seat as she seemingly experienced a panic attack.
She added: "I know I am so dramatic to scream that much. But guys, there was like food flying in the aisle."
It is unclear which flight Mia was on.
Fear of flying stemmed from SQ321 incident
In a follow-up clip posted on Jan 14, Mia revealed that she was a passenger on SQ321.
The flight encountered severe turbulence on May 21, 2024 while flying from the UK to Singapore. A 73-year-old British passenger died from a suspected heart attack after the incident.
Mia said her fear of flying grew after the incident. She was in the bathroom when turbulence struck and ended up suffering a spine fracture.
"In my head, I couldn't even register it as turbulence. I thought the plane was really going down," she said in her post.
However, Mia also apologised to other passengers on the flight and said she realised it might have caused other anxious flyers to feel even more uncomfortable.
"I guess I cropped too much things out that everyone thinks it's fake," she added.
"Fear looks different for everyone. Mine just happened to look like this."
Netizens continue to slam her
"If my pinky is up means I'm an attention seeker," one user quipped, with many others catching on and commenting on the reference to the influencer's voiceover.
Others called her the "public nuisance final boss", while some urged her not to take planes if she had a fear of flying.
"Imagine upgrading to business class to avoid screaming kids, but you encounter screaming adults instead," one user commented.
However, a few netizens also expressed concern and support for her.
"I am so sorry this is happening to you," one wrote, while acknowledging that it can be terrifying to be on a plane going through turbulence.
"You don't have to explain yourself to strangers, this is your personal experience, not theirs," another user added.
