American Airlines apologises for removing mother and baby from flight over dry skin condition
‘I have never been so humiliated in my life!’ Jordan Flake says
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.American Airlines has issued an apology to a mother and her son after they were thrown off a flight because of a rare genetic skin condition.
Jordan Flake was asked to leave a flight bound for South Carolina on 28 February by cabin crew after they noticed the pair had a rash.
Detailing the incident in a Facebook post, she wrote: “Before take-off, a man (employee called on flight to handle the situation) came up to my row and asked the 2 men sitting next to me to get up.”
She continued: “He then quietly asked me about ‘my rash’ and if I had a letter from a doctor stating it was ok for me to fly.”
According to Ms Flake, despite explaining she and her son Jackson were born with ichthyosis, which, according to the NHS, is a non-contagious condition that causes extremely dry, thick and scaly skin, the employee told her she and her son would have to leave the plane.
“He talked to the pilot as we were getting off. The pilot seemed ok with it, but the flight attendant rudely said (without even acknowledging me) ‘well she doesn’t have a letter from a doctor, so...’”
Ms Flake said she’d “never been so humiliated in my life” and also noted that the incident coincidentally took place on Rare Disease Day.
“Quit being ignorant and take the time to listen to people! I shouldn’t have to explain myself,” she concluded the post.
“Just to clarify, my issue is with the crew. Not an airline employee. He was called by the crew to remove me from the plane,” Ms Flake added. “He was very helpful and mad about the situation. He tried advocating for me.”
Ms Flake, who was returning home following a trip to Texas to see her husband before his military deployment, said an American Airlines employee “helped me off the plane, got me a hotel and a new flight with a different airline” but the airline was unable to retrieve her checked bags.
American Airlines said in a statement: “Our goal at American Airlines is to create a welcoming environment for all of our customers.
“We sincerely apologise to Ms Flake and her son for the experience they had Thursday, and our team has begun an investigation into the matter.”
The company added that it had been in touch with Ms Flake and would be refunding the cost of her trip.
In January, the carrier was accused of discrimination by Jewish family, who were thrown off a flight from Miami to Detroit for alleged “body odour”.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments