This Famous Star Sues Plane Company After Turbulence Warning "Gave Him Anxiety"

These days, airline travel isn't a guarantee of the most pleasant experience—delays, cancellations, and the occasional mid-air freakout tend to make travelers dread the formerly friendly skies. But one star in the music world has sued an airline after their warning about a very basic element of air travel—turbulence—made him anxious. Read on to find out more.

According to the UK Times, the famed Italian opera singer Andrea Bocelli is suing Private Jet Services of Seabrook, New Hampshire, a company that provided him with a private plane, because it allegedly disregarded his request not to warn him about turbulence, causing him to become anxious. Bocelli filed the lawsuit in federal court in New Hampshire. He claimed the company also provided him with a noisier and older aircraft than he agreed to for a flight from California to Ohio. 

The Times reported that Bocelli was in the midst of a U.S. concert tour and had given the airline company a "rider" specifying his requests for any flights he would book with them. The lawsuit alleges that one of the singer's requests was that pilots or crew should not make in-flight announcements about bad weather or turbulence. 

"He is also not a very keen flyer, as he has fear of flying and can feel anxiety related to safety issues during air travel," said the suit filed by attorney Michele Kenney. "In particular, he is sensitive to the elevated noise that an older airplane tends to make in flight, with such elevated noise causing him more anxiety."

The suit alleges that Bocelli, who is blind, could tell by the loud noise of the plane that it was older than what he had requested. Additionally, despite his requests regarding in-flight announcements about turbulence, a flight attendant allegedly told Bocelli and his party that they should expect a bumpy ride. These developments "caused him to be anxious and to fear for his safety during the last 20 minutes of the flight," the lawsuit says.

The suit claims Bocelli paid Private Jet Services $569,800 for 15 flights in November and December 2021; the company said it couldn't provide planes that met Bocelli's stipulations for the last five dates of his tour; and the company canceled those flights but didn't offer a refund, forcing Bocelli to spend more than $300,000 on new flights. Bocelli is seeking treble damages for that $569,800 from the company—meaning up to three times that amount—for the alternative flight arrangements, lawyers' fees, and damages.