Alberta man claims WestJet flight attendant mocked his weight, patted his stomach
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REDCLIFF – An Alberta man eager to spend Christmas in sunny Mexico says his vacation was spoiled after a flight attendant fat-shamed him with cracks about his weight and even patted his tummy.
Dave Rogers, who lives in Redcliff, southeast of Calgary, said he and his wife flew from Edmonton to Mazatlan on Christmas Eve. During the flight, Rogers says they were each given a pop can instead of small cups.
When another flight attendant came to pick up the trash before landing, Rogers said the employee looked at him and held up two fingers for two cans. Rogers said he nodded and the attendant puffed out his cheeks with air.
“I’m not exactly sure what he was trying to do. But then he gestured with his hand, a big arch movement around his stomach as if to say, again, fat or large.”
Roger said the flight attendant then reached down to tap him on his stomach.
“He tapped me on my stomach and said, ‘this is the result,'” Rogers said.
“It just left me gobsmacked and bewildered what to say or do. My wife looked at me and said, you know, ‘What the hell?’ you know, ‘Did he really just say that?'”
Even the passenger in the adjacent seat seemed surprised, Rogers added.
He said the exchange gnawed at him during the vacation, and friends and family they told about it were surprised and shocked.
He wasn’t his “normal, jovial self” for the rest of the trip, he said.
Rogers said one relative, a recently retired WestJet flight attendant, told him the incident went against training and that touching a passenger’s stomach bordered on assault.
“I’m ex-military and, you know, I don’t see that as assault myself, but it could be seen as being assault because it was unwanted contact,” Rogers said, adding that’s when he decided to complain to WestJet.
He said the airline apologized and also said what happened goes against training. But Rogers said he felt as though the company was brushing him off.
He said he doesn’t want the employee fired, but has asked for compensation, such as a flight voucher or points.
The airline denied the request, saying Rogers didn’t have supporting evidence of the interaction, he said.
WestJet said in an email to The Canadian Press on Friday that it “takes matters of this nature very seriously.”
“The guest’s allegations have been escalated for internal review to ensure appropriate action is taken,” the airline said. “We hope to resolve this situation directly with the guest.”
Rogers said he also contacted the Canadian Transportation Agency, but it said the customer-service case was not in its jurisdiction.
Rogers admitted he’s put on weight since leaving the military, but said no one should be treated the way he was.
“What if you did that to a woman? She’d be absolutely mortified and in tears, no doubt,” Rogers said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 9, 2026.
— By Rob Drinkwater in Edmonton