One family have been left reeling after Alaska Airlines reportedly forced them to deplane when their teenage son with Down syndrome threw up before take off.
Meaghan Hess, the boy’s sister, has accused the airline of “disability discrimination” in a written statement about what unfolded when her brother Patrick attempted to fly from St. Louis to Seattle with their parents.
Hess, who was not travelling with her family, says airline staff forced the group off the flight, leaving them stranded in the airport when her brother vomited “a little”.
“After boarding the flight, Patrick threw up a little, and the airline workers kicked my family off the flight,” Hess, a third-year law student explained to NBC News.
The airline reportedly offered Patrick a plastic garbage bag to be sick in and rebooked the family on a new flight the next morning.
However, Hess has complained that no accommodation was organised and her family were left “stranded at the airport for nearly 11 hours”.
Patrick and his family were reportedly left stranded in the airport for 11 hours after he became ill on a plane and was forced to disembark.
Hess argues that becasue Patrick has Down syndrome, he was treated differently.
“I can’t help but think [that] if a nondisabled child threw up, would the airline have kicked that family off the flight?” she said.
Alaska Airlines insists that staff was following regulations and even upgraded the family to first class for the new flight.
“The family was not able to depart on their original flight because the family’s child was visibly ill,” airline spokesperson Ann Johnson told NBC News.
“Out of an abundance of caution, the agent determined that the child was not fit to fly,” she continued.
“In the case of a medical-related situation, it is safer for guests to be treated on the ground, as our crew are not trained medical professionals.”
Hess has since taken to Twitter urging businesses to create policies to take better care of people with disabilities. She says she hopes by sharing her family’s story, other families won’t experience the same treatment in the future.
