JetBlue said it only removes from families from flights when
they’re a security risk. (Photo: Getty Images)
A New York family of nine on its way to vacation in Punta
Cana says they were unfairly kicked off a JetBlue flight before it departed Tuesday, accusing a
flight attendant of being short-tempered and calling them “animals” on the
loudspeaker as they left the plane.
The family planned to take another JetBlue flight to Punta Cana on Wednesday.
When contacted by Yahoo Travel, a JetBlue spokesperson said the flight
attendant in question would not be punished, and gave the following statement:
“We love welcoming families on JetBlue, and we do so for
thousands of families every day without incident. The decision to remove
someone from a flight is never taken lightly and happens only if it is clear
that the customer poses a risk to the safe and comfortable operation of the
flight.”
Tal Kimchy of Palisades, N.Y., was boarding a JetBlue flight
in New York’s JFK airport along with his wife, mother, brother, sister-in-law,
and four children. He told Yahoo Travel that as they put their bags in the
overhead compartment, a flight attendant asked Kimchy’s brother to step inside
the aisle so others could pass.
Kimchy said his brother responded that he would step aside
as soon as he could let his pregnant wife take her seat. She asked him if he
was saying no.
“He said, ‘I’m not saying no, just give me a minute,’ Kimchy
said of his brother. “At that time she said, ‘It’s my plane, and if you don’t
like it, I can make sure you get off of it right now.’ He said, ‘Why, what did
I do?’ She said, ‘You’re being a hostile passenger.”
Kimchy said the situation seemed to settle down and the
family took their seats, when the flight attendant aggressively re-approached
and asked his brother if he was “going to be good now.”
“He looked at her and said ‘I’m OK,’” Kimchy said. “She
said, ‘Are yougood?’ He said, ‘Isn’t OK and good the same thing?’ She said, ‘I
need to know if I need to throw you off the plane.’”
Another flight attendant then approached to defuse the
situation, and Kimchy began recording the interaction with his phone. The first
flight attendant then went to discuss what happened with the pilot, and soon
after, Kimchy’s brother was told he had to leave the plane and catch a later
flight.
The rest of the family was going to continue the journey
when after more discussion by JetBlue officials and airport police, Kimchy
said, they were told they had to leave the plane as well because they were a
security risk.
As the family left the plane, Kimchy said, “One of the
flight attendants went on the loudspeaker and said, ‘Now that the animals have
left, we can continue the flight.”
The flight attendant involved in the dispute also left the
plane and stayed behind when the flight took off. A JetBlue spokesperson said
this was to keep the plane from being further delayed while the flight
attendant gave a police report. No charges were filed.
Regarding the family, including his brother, being allowed
to fly the next day on JetBlue, Kimchy said, “I don’t understand how he’s a
danger today but he’s not tomorrow.”
Credit: Yahoo Travel
No comments:
Post a Comment