Well isn't this special:
KATIE Couric had fellow passengers aboard a New York-bound jet on the warpath this week when, as their plane was about to taxi to the runway, she got out of her seat and begged the pilot to allow one of her late-arriving producers to board.
"It was like, 'Who the hell does she think she is?' " fumed one passenger who observed Couric's diva-like antics. "If you or I attempted something like this, we'd be cooling our heels at Guantanamo."
The witness told Page Six that attendants on Wednesday's 6:30 p.m. Delta Shuttle flight out of Washington, D.C., had already closed the door and passengers were buckled in, when the soon-to-be CBS News anchor raced up the aisle with a cellphone to her ear and told an attendant she had to speak to the pilot right away. Couric was then allowed into the cockpit and convinced the pilot to delay the flight and reopen the door for her producer, Nicola Hewitt.
"One flight attendant rolled her eyes and told me, 'This is only the second time I've ever seen this happen – the other time was a sick passenger,' " the witness said.
A spokesman for Couric confirmed the perky newsgal intervened, but insisted, "Katie only spoke to the pilot after receiving permission from the flight attendant." He said Hewitt had been delayed from getting on the shuttle behind Couric because of an extended security check. Then, trying to put a positive spin on the tale of Couric's chutzpah, the flack added that another late passenger who was also about to be stranded was also able to make the flight.
Delta spokesman Anthony Black said Couric got no special treatment. "The airlines get unusual situations that happen every day, and the crew is trained to make decisions on a case-by-case basis," he said.
Black added that when Couric made her request, the pilot determined that favorable tailwinds would not delay the hourlong flight – and even with the brief delay taking off, the flight arrived at La Guardia 10 minutes ahead of schedule.
Still, our witness – a high-powered public-relations executive who rides the shuttle regularly – said he and fellow passengers were not impressed at the behavior of TV's top news personality, who got a whopping $60 million contract to jump from NBC's "Today" show to CBS.
"Using your celebrity in the post-9/11 age to stop a flight is diabolical," he raged.
Imagine the reaction any of us would have received at this….actually I think the majority of us wouldn't have even thought about pulling a stunt like this, especially in the post-9/11 world. But to Katie, all in another days work. Additionally, the airline itself should be ashamed for allowing this and for even opening the cockpit doors. I thought those were to stay shut?
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This is a shuttle flight out of Washington, DC so one may assume that a Flight Marshall was aboard.
Anyone else charging the cockpit would have been shot.
At the very least, she should have been arrested for interfering with flight operations. But again, those are rules that the rest of us would have to obey. Not these people. They think they are above the law.