Video of Emirates attendant pouring champagne back into bottle goes viral

An Emirates Airlines ticket desk stands empty at JFK International Airport in New York, U.S., March 21, 2017. REUTERS/Lucas Jackson

A viral video in which an Emirates flight attendant is seen refilling a champagne bottle with what appear to be unused glasses of the drink has caused a stir online.

Passenger Yevgeny Kaymov, who was travelling to Dubai, had unintentionally filmed the act, according to The Independent.

The incident has raised eyebrows over hygiene standards given that Emirates is widely considered to be one of the finest airlines in the world. But amid the outcry, some have pointed out that the attendant was merely following standard procedure for disposal of used goods.

On Reddit, many users contended that this was just a process followed so that the attendant could later dispose of the material once airborne.

"I watched a United stewardess start to pour drink waste into a water bottle ..., then she capped it and tossed it in the trash can so there was no liquid sloshing around," commented one person.

Another person pointed out that the process is observed because disposing of items when flights are on-ground is not permitted.

Others also commented that it is impossible for the attendant to reuse the champagne as the carbonated drink would have lost all its fizz. But Brad Bernoulli, who is an anonymous columnist with The Independent, had a different view. According to him, the act was nothing but a measure taken by the crew to have enough supplies stocked and prevent getting into trouble with the passengers.

"Frontline employees bear the brunt of many angry customer reactions, and if saving a few glasses of bubbly makes the 16-hour flight go smoother, the airline shouldn't expect anything less,” he said.