Caught on cam: NC passenger unable to social distance on crowded flight from NYC

During a time when airports are nearly empty and most flights are reportedly empty as well, a Chapel Hill woman was surprised to see so many passengers sitting close together on her flight to attend her grandmother's funeral.

Erin Strine was on Flight 388 from JFK through Charlotte when she shot a video of what she considered unsafe social distancing. She tweeted: "I've never felt less safe or cared for in my entire life."

She took a video showing the cramped conditions.

To make matters worse, said Strine, many people coming from New York were not wearing masks.

"When they’re coming from the epicenter of this pandemic in the U.S., it just seems irresponsible that they would not take precautions to wear a mask for themselves as well as the people around them," said Strine.

Then, she said, an announcement came over the intercom, saying everyone needed to return to their original seats, and that due to the very full flight, they would not be able to social distance or spread out in any way.

Strine said she felt frustrated by what she considered a risky situation, saying she felt like she was no longer safe to hug her family during a time of grief.

American Airlines made a statement on the situation, saying, "In response to CDC social distancing guidelines, American began temporarily relaxed seating policies for customers on our flights and reduced onboard food and beverage service levels. To encourage social distancing, gate agents will reassign seats to create more space between customers."

All airlines, including American Airlines, have put out multiple statements about how they are sanitizing their planes and the terminals. They also address social distancing, but in this situation the passenger said it simply wasn’t possible.

The statement also said that passengers can change seats once they are on the plane if they are uncomfortable about how close they are sitting to others – but again it all depends on how full the plane is.