Nobuntu (nobs) Mkhize Disrupts FlySafair Flight with Racial Tantrum

• by Mamparra
• December 30, 2024

It’s official, Nobuntu Mkhize has secured the “Mamparra Award” for her mid-air theatrics which turned a routine FlySafair flight into a social media mamparra. From self-declaring as an “ANC b*%#” to her Coke-can tossing and vitriol remarks, nobs managed to turn Boxing Day into a masterclass on how not to behave on an airline.

The “leader” with an “eye for excellence”

Scoring an outstanding

• 10 out of 10 for igniting the social media shitstorm,
• 10 out of potato for dragging her late father, her employer and her country through the mud.

Nobuntu now joins the mighty fraternity mamparras that freely roam mamparraland.

Image Credit Daily Maverick Article

In a summery, summary of the Boxing Day event, Nobuntu ‘nobs’ Mkhize or “Knob” aka SABC’s “Brand Manager” reportedly boarded the FlySAfair flight demanded a drink in a manner that is so righteously deserved and befitting of Mamparra royalty. Unfortunately a peasant in the cabin crew did not recognise the royal (due to the blond wig) and mistook the royal decree as drunken belligerence and that’s where things kicked off.

The widespread video evidence shows multiple scenes of Nobuntu, confronting the cabin crew, physically interfering with their duties and making inflammatory and racially charged comments that then spiral down to insulting the full spectrum of the rainbow nation.

“You’re a coloured from Mitchells Plain, all these gold rings but no degree. Right now when we land, I’m going to take an Uber home. You don’t even have a driving licence. You don’t even have a car.”

Among her many statements were threats to have the incident broadcast on SABC News and claims of political connections, all of which drawing a pretty significant public backlash.

The Boxing Day incident was captured on multple videos, from multiple angles and widely circulated throughout South African social media and by the time of this writing hit every single mainstream media platform  in South Africa.

The footage shows Mkhize in a this heated altercation with flight attendants over……………… the burning issue of this whole debacle ………….. the drinks service.

And it just unravels from there.

At one point, she is heard calling herself an “ANC bitch” and claiming immunity from consequences.

Yip, b@*%# be all about the whiskey and soda!

Feel Free to Watch The Full Video on X if you have not already done so.

FlySafair, SABC and ANC Responding With Vigor

FlySafair spokesperson, Kirby Gordon (who has wrestled a few tigers in his time) confirmed the passenger has been added to the airline’s no-fly list and was handed over to law enforcement upon landing in Cape Town. Gordon’s stance was that incidents that undermine the safety and professionalism of flight crews, (whose primary responsibility is the safekeeping of all passengers) would not be tolerated.

The SABC was also not chuffed with their employee’s behavior saying that they are going to address the matter through internal channels and distanced themselves from the Mkhizes comments and behaviour.

“The SABC regrets this incident and always encourages staff members to uphold the values of respect and integrity,”

Well, good for them that they managed to wake one of their staff up from a Christmas hangover long enough to send out a semi-coherent tweet, as did the ANC, who similarly backpedaled from the “ANC b*%#” as far and fast as they possibly could.

“Regardless of whether this individual is a member of the ANC, we unequivocally state that no person has the right to behave in such an unacceptable manner,”

The ANC said it would not allow its name to be “dragged through the mud” by individuals failing to uphold dignity and decorum of the party. That was Zuma’s job and nobody challenges #1.

Back to FlySafair

Being banned from an airline is not as trivial thing. FlySafair is earned it’s way into being the country’s biggest “cheap seats” airline and has done so by punching it’s way out of many tight corners and survived far bigger and scarier threats than the case of Miss Knobs bruised ego.

The carriers hallmark and claim to fame is safe, professioinal, reliable and affordable air travel in South Africa for everyone, which is largely how they become South Africa’s leading domestic airline. Either by design or default is one of FlySafairs unique selling points is almost democratic equalization for all passangers.

The old British first-class stigma was chucked out the window by FlySafair, when they equipped their planes with thin-line seats that don’t recline and dispensed with “business class” bullshit, which unilaterally freed up legroom for all passangers. This in many ways, was a signature move that seperated FlySafair from it’s competitors because passangers no longer had to walk  past the “business class” wankers on their way to cramped cheap seats at the back of the plane.

All passangers had equal space when seated on the plane and for an affordable R50 you could still pretend you are a “business class” wanker and get “priority boarding” (which means litterally nothing to anyone onboard). Without the elitist stigma, low cost airtravel in South Africa was litterally pioneered by FlySafair.

There are many strokes of genius in the things FlySafair has done over the last decade, but that’s not what this story is about. This story is about one of FlySafairs former customers Nobuntu (nobs) Mkhize.

When you get smacked off one airline with a “no-fly ban” there’s a very strong possibility that other airlines won’t be super thrilled at the prospect of letting you onboard their flights either. This is especially true if you go to court (where you ascend from being an “oops I drank too much” passenger to a legal threat). If a customer is likely to disrupt a business or cause legal or other issues (that could cost the business money) any private company is within their rights and mandated to pull the handbrake and block risky customers for whatever reason they see fit.

That’s just a fact.

Airlines are private companies and their profits stem from economising on costs, maximising passanger satisfaction and keeping the planes safely in the air. Passengers like Miss Knobs are what you would call “a forseeable and avoidable risk”, thus when an airline like FlySafair blocks you, it’s very likley that other airlines will follow suit. There is not relly much a court will do in favor of a plaintiff in this kind of case.

So cheers to that.

Ergo Miss Knobs has likley lost the privilage (not a right) of flying to destinations South Africa. Nothing personal, it’s just business; all perfectly legal and within the rights of any South African company to refuse to do business with any customer they deem problematic for whatever reason they deem applicable.

It’s at this juncture, nobs should have probably realized that she f$ck@#d-up but instead of apologizing and retreating into her corner Miss Knobs decided to go the Media24 limelight route and state her case, which is where the public flogging kicked up a whole new gear.

So Nobuntu Mkhize Denies Being Drunk

Mkhize alleged that the cabin crew were rude to her, claiming the situation escalated when a flight attendant refused to serve her drinks. She expressed confusion over the refusal and shared her perspective during the interview with News24.

“That’s when I said, excuse me, because I did not understand why she would not serve me,” she said, explaining that the crew accused her of being annoying in isiXhosa.

Nobuntu Mkhize denied being intoxicated when boarding the FlySafair flight, explaining she had only one drink at the airport lounge with her boyfriend and “felt completely sober”. She attributed the altercation to a misunderstanding with a flight attendant over drink options, claiming the crew member responded rudely.

While denying that she threw a can of Coke at the crew member, she admitted to throwing it on the floor out of irritation.

Mkhize also addressed her remarks about her late father, a respected journalist, stating they were meant to highlight her awareness of the media’s influence, while attributing other harsh comments, including racial remarks, to feeling undermined and provoked by the cabin crew.

Mkhize announced plans to pursue legal action against both the airline and the police, accusing the airline of falsely claiming she was drunk and blaming the incident on provocation. The police have confirmed an investigation, but the legal consequences remain uncertain and are most likley to not land up in the direction the plaintiff thinks it will.

Meanwhile in mamparraland, the controversy has fueled discussions about passenger behavior, the role of airline staff in de-escalating conflicts.

That fact is this, cabin crew are not waiters. They are crew, they are not there for your comfort, entertainment or bidding they are staff hired and trained to maintain and ensure the safety protocols of the aircraft are maintained first and formost. That is job #1, job #2 and job #3 cabin crew are trained to assess and deal with threats and situations exactly like this and many more.

So cheers to that.

Speaking to News24, Nobuntu Mkhize claimed she only had a single whiskey before boarding the flight and denied being intoxicated. “We checked in and then decided to go to the slow lounge. At the slow lounge, we ate quickly and we had one drink, which was the whiskey,” she said. “We realised that we were running late, then we went and boarded the plane. When we got inside the plane, I was not drunk, I was sober as a judge,” she added.

Comment streams ignited with pearls of wisdom and photos of the pre-drinks table.

“Any sober judge is probably going to give this case a good old South African drop kick out the court, if it ever get’s that far.”

“But not all judges are sober”

“If she was sober,then she was not raised properly,there is something really wrong with this woman, she needs to have her mental health evaluated, she is a disgrace to herself and those around her, in the video you can clearly see that she was drunk sies man”

“She should have stuck to the story of being drunk. Being sober and behaving that way makes it even worse🤦🏾‍♀”

“This one must read the South African Civil Aviation Act and the Regulation pertaining to such behavior onboard an aircraft while inflight and stop making noice. She endanger the life’s of other passengers, crew, herself etc….and jeopardizes the safe operations of that aircraft in itself”

etc…

Mkhize’s claim of only having one whiskey before boarding is on the sharp side of questionable in context with the photo she shared on her public social media (that has now gone very private). The image, taken at the slow lounge before the flight, shows a table littered with empty cans that suggest she and her boyfriend were indulging in wee bit more than just a single drink. While Mkhize insists she was “sober as a judge,” the visual evidence hints they were already in a very festive mood long before boarding the FlySafair flight. Pretty much expecting the till slip and slow lounge waiters feedback to surface at some point.

So cheers to that.

When asked about some of the controversial remarks she made during the incident, Mkhize suggested that frustration over being mistreated played a role in her outburst.

“If I was white, they would not have treated me the way they treated me. Although I do not condone it, I said some of the things I said because they were undermining me since I am black”

Hold the bus, let me check the racisim rulebook quick.

Excerpt from the Official Guide to Racist Outrage Boxing Day : 2024 Edition

• Rule 7.1(a): The race card is only valid for use against white okes on the day of the incident. Post-incident usage attempts are null and void, as overuse by (see Appendix: Julius Malema)
• Rule 7.1(b): If the race card is pulled after the 24-hour window, it shall be declared invalid, and the incident will revert to being judged solely on merit, much to the dismay of the user.
• Rule 8.3(c): If a white oke causes an in-flight tantrum, racist kak or even semi racist kak, then skip a turn, no arrest, direct to immediate placement on burning cross on runway 17 for public amusement.

Hear ye, hear ye so sayeth the people. Uno!

So the diversion tactics fell a bit flat as the Knobs video takes a blatant, physical and verbal punch at the cabin crew member oozing with privilaged smite at coloured community. There are a few members of the Mitchells Plain that took umbrage to those remarks and are quite willing, happy and able to hop in an Uber and explain the discontent face to face.

While this incident is a reminder of the challenges airline staff face in maintaining order and safety during flights, for me the racisim against the cloured community is a facet of the story, there is an underlying malice in putting down of another human being abusing power and influence and entitlement that is actually the thrust of the issue. The cabin crew held that situation together pretty well considering, in the same shoes I probably would have been tempted to punch that b@*%# in the face with a traytable.

Damn right! When I order the pesants to bring my whiskey and soda best they comply! Or else, daddy, SABC and ANC will shit on your head.

You don’t need a BA Degree in marketing to understand, you’re 30,000 feet in the air, traveling at the speed of a bullet. Things can go wrong real fast in that kind of environment, which is why keeping the peace is a damn non-negotiable.

Sure, you might have opinions about how the crew is handling things, but in-flight is not the place to air them.

FlySafair litterally outlines what you can expect with a flight,  but also invites public feedback about their flight services urges the public to contact them to resolve issues. So bite your tongue, mutter your frustrations to yourself and save the complaints for when the plane has landed safely on the ground and if you still feel like sending your “Pitch a bitch” email for Mr Kirby and his crews, feel free Safair is actually open and pretty effective in handleing the complaints streams and resolving issues through their ground ops.

Just in case we created a guide here for any other Knobs that don’t quite understand the things you can’t do on a commercial flight.

What NOT to Do as an Airline Passenger

Air travel can be stressful, but losing your cool in the air is the fastest way to turn your trip into a nightmare. Here’s a guide on behaviors to avoid as a passenger, paired with what happens if you cross the line. Spoiler alert: it doesn’t end well.

The Inevitable Consequences

If you engage in any of these behaviors, you can expect flack from all angles. Which could include being restrained, receiving warnings, or being cut off from services mid-flight, but those are the least of the actual problems. Legal trouble is also a very real and likely outcome, with potential arrests, hefty fines, and even a permanent criminal record to contend with along side your lifetime ban. Public backlash can be just as damaging, viral videos and public shaming can follow you around for years. Travel bans are serious, airlines may bar you from flying with them for life, and some share no-fly lists with other carriers effected well beyond the borders of South Africa.

The thing is you don’t need to reach the level of Mkhize’s notoriety, 1 drunken incident, 1 skew remark and all hell can break loose. If you claim to have a bomb on a plane to a cabin crew member (even if you are joking) you could land up with all of the above.

Don’t belive me? Ok well I will let this white oke explain how it works.

Those Racist Comments

South African comment streams often devolve into a familiar cycle of racial finger-pointing, with different groups calling each other out in a predictable to-and-fro. But what made this incident stand out was how much of the backlash came from within the black community itself. Instead of defaulting to the usual defensiveness or redirection, many black social media users were the loudest voices condemning Mkhize’s behavior, directly holding her accountable for what they saw as a deep embarrassment. In calling out “Nobs” the message was pretty clear that bad behavior, especially under the public spotlight, is not going to get a free pass by pulling the proverbial race card.

This isn’t the first time, and it certainly won’t be the last, the fact is that idiocy knows no color or creed. Im encouraged that the only real story value in this entire conversation is that we are starting to see turning point in the race blame culture that infiltrates South Africa social meda comment streams and sways them from the facts.

It’s official, Nobuntu Mkhize has secured the “Mamparra Award” for her mid-air theatrics which turned a routine FlySafair flight into a social media mamparra. From self-declaring as an “ANC b*%#” to her Coke-can tossing and vitriol remarks, nobs managed to turn Boxing Day into a masterclass on how not to behave on an airline. The…