Architect Hurled Drunken Abuse at Virgin Atlantic Flight Attendant

An architect is wanted by police after allegedly attacking a stewardess while drunk on a flight from Dubai and accusing her of racism after being asked not to disturb a sleeping baby.

Simone de Gale, 44, shouted, “I’m an architect and you’re just a f***ing air hostess” after being told not to disturb the infant, Ealing Magistrates’ Court heard.

De Gale allegedly hurled abuse at members of the cabin crew, jabbed stewardess Sarah Jane Buckland near the collarbone and grabbed her cardigan during the Virgin Atlantic flight to Heathrow on February 5.

The architect reportedly became enraged after being politely asked not to walk through an aisle where passengers—including a family with a nine-month-old baby—were sleeping.

She is accused of repeatedly calling cabin crew racist and telling one flight attendant: “You’re a f***ing dumb air hostess. You need to learn your place.”

When the aircraft landed, officers from Heathrow Airport’s aviation policing team noticed that De Gale’s speech was slurred and that she smelled strongly of alcohol, the court heard. She also stumbled as she left the plane.

De Gale, who lives in Notting Hill, was convicted today of four offences. They included behaving in a threatening, abusive, insulting or disorderly manner towards a crew member, being drunk on an aircraft and assaulting Ms Buckland by beating.

She did not attend Ealing Magistrates’ Court and was convicted in her absence. A warrant has now been issued for her arrest.

De Gale’s personal assistant contacted officials to say that she had been stranded in Dubai since September 8 and was expected to return to the UK at the weekend.

Prosecutor Sinan Ors told the court that De Gale became verbally abusive and threatening towards members of the cabin crew before allegedly assaulting Ms Buckland.

Giving evidence, Ms Buckland explained that the confrontation began when De Gale tried to cross an aisle beside a sleeping family.

Ms Buckland told the court: “I said to her: ‘Would you mind not crossing at the cross aisle?’”

“I say it every flight, and she came straight across and started shouting at me: ‘You’re a f***ing dumb air hostess. You need to learn your place.’”

“She called me racist. ‘You’ve only said this to me because you’re racist.’”

“It was just a barrage of those words.”

Asked to describe De Gale’s manner, Ms Buckland replied: “Really loudly, really aggressive. It happened so quickly.”

Ms Buckland said De Gale demanded to speak to the captain and repeatedly referred to her own profession.

“She was pointing. ‘Get me the captain now. You’re only saying this to me because you’re racist, and I’m an architect and you’re just a f***ing air hostess.’”

She said a colleague approached and tried to calm de Gale, but the defendant allegedly began shouting at her too.

Ms Buckland said she and other crew members tried to calm down the confrontation: ‘We were all trying to defuse this lady,’ she said, adding that de Gale then started ‘pushing’ her and ‘jabbing’ her near her collarbone.

De Gale is then said to have announced she needed to go to the toilet.

Ms Buckland said: ‘The next thing, she came back and just grabbed my cardigan and pulled me towards her.’

Another attendant intervened, telling de Gale to let go of her colleague.

Ms Buckland added: ‘She absolutely laid hands on me.’

Other passengers had begun standing up as the confrontation developed, the witness said, and a male crew member, a former police officer, also arrived to assist.

Graham Cox told the court de Gale had boasted about earning more money than the cabin crew and owning her own architecture business.

He said she repeatedly accused the flight attendants of racism and claimed stewardesses were ‘only there to serve drinks and food’.

Asked what she had said about her profession, Mr Cox replied: ‘She said she earns significantly more money than they did. She’s an architect that owns her own business.’

He described her behaviour as ‘very loud, boisterous, aggressive’. ‘She was swearing,’ he said.

Mr Cox said de Gale was also getting into other passengers’ faces while holding a phone camera.

Passenger Jonathan Shelbourne told the court de Gale had suggested she was a better person than the flight attendant because she earned significantly more money.

He said she also claimed to understand exactly what the aircraft’s bulkhead was for because she was an architect.

Mr Shelbourne praised the attendant’s response to the confrontation. ‘I was surprised at how well she kept her cool,’ he told the court.

Ms Buckland was eventually taken to the flight deck, where the pilots considered how to handle the situation, including restraining de Gale or diverting the flight.

Although she was not physically injured, the attendant said she had been badly shaken. She nevertheless agreed to return to the passenger cabin and continue her duties.

‘That’s what I’m there for. That’s what I’m trained to do,’ she explained.

Ms Buckland praised passengers who offered their support after witnessing the confrontation.

‘The passengers were incredible. It was unbelievable,’ she said.

She told the court the incident had made her more cautious when approaching travellers. ‘It has made me really aware of just the total escalation,’ she said. ‘I’m very hesitant now.’

Magistrates issued a warrant for de Gale’s arrest, not backed for bail. 

De Gale is the founder and chief executive of Simone De Gale Architects, working on luxury homes and major developments in Britain and abroad.

She has previously served as honorary treasurer and a board trustee at the Royal Institute of British Architects.

Images show she met King Charles with her mother at Buckingham Palace in March last year. 

She was named Architect of the Year at the Women in Construction Awards in 2017, and she is due to judge this year’s World Architecture Festival.