A Southwest pilot threatened to turn the plane around and go home if passengers didn't stop AirDropp

• A viral TikTok captured a pilot threatening not to fly if passengers didn't stop AirDropping nudes.
• In the clip, the pilot told passengers to 'quit sending naked pictures' or vacation would be ruined.
• Cyberflashing isn't a new problem, and legislators are working to criminalize the act. 

A Southwest Airlines pilot piloting a plane to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, threatened to turn the plane around and involve security if a passenger didn't stop sending unsolicited AirDropped nudes.

An August 25 TikTok chronicling the incident was uploaded by user Teighlor Marsalis (@teighmars) and has since been viewed more than 2 million times. 

"So here's the deal," the pilot said over the intercom. "If this continues while we're on the ground, I'm going to have to pull back to the gate, everybody's going to have to get off, we're going to have to get security involved, and [your] vacation is going to be ruined," 

"Whatever that AirDrop thing is — quit sending naked pictures, let's get yourself to Cabo," he continued. 

The incident reportedly happened before the plane was airborne when a passenger received the explicit image and complained to a flight attendant. Marsalis, who told Insider via Instagram direct message she thought the pilot handled the situation "perfectly," said she also received an AirDrop request but denied it. 

In a statement provided to Insider, Southwest Airlines said the safety, security, and wellbeing of customers and employees was its "highest priority at all times. When made aware of a potential problem, our employees address issues to support the comfort of those traveling with us."

Cyberflashing, the practice of sending unsolicited and explicit photos to nearby strangers, is not a new problem. In a 2017 Pew Research Center report, 53% of women ages 18-29 reported having been sent unsolicited obscene images (compared to 37% of men within the same range). A 2021 report found that 33% of women under 35 reported having been sexually harassed online in general — three times more often than men within the same age range. 

Cyberflashing is already considered a misdemeanor in Texas after legislators teamed up with dating app Bumble in 2019 to criminalize it. In California, a new bill sent to Gov. Gavin Newsom on August 22 would give unsuspecting recipients the ability to sue the senders if they're older than 18.

"Just as individuals suffer sexual harassment and abuse in their physical, non-digital lives," Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry said when the California Assembly approved the bill, "there's a growing incidence of individuals being harassed by receiving unsolicited, sexually explicit images and videos including from people they do not know."

Email tips on all things internet to mleighton@businessinsider.com.

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