Family furious after being kicked off plane 'when 1yo kicked passenger's seat'
A couple has demanded answers from a JetBlue employee why their family of five was removed from a US flight.
Mobile phone footage of the altercation with the staff member, shows the couple demanding to know why them and their young children were removed from the plane before takeoff, at Florida’s Fort Lauderdale airport.
“I want to hear from you, what was the story you heard? I want a reason why?” they can be heard asking the JetBlue supervisor.
“I want my kids home in New York.”
Mandy Ifrah told local media she and husband Tamir Raanan were heading home with their three young children on July 2 when she and another passenger got into an argument about her one-year-old kicking the back of the person’s seat.
The clip shows the parents becoming angered about being asked to exit the plane, and initially refused.
They demanded to know why they were being removed, but the staff member did not specify a reason in the video - only offering to refund their tickets.
"Can you give me a reason? Why not? Why not? You were...Give me a reason. Why not? I want the reason. I'm talking to you nicely," Ms Ifrah said in the recording.
After six minutes of arguing, the Broward County sheriff’s deputies stepped in.
“Whether it’s right or whether it’s wrong, it’s their plane, and they can do whatever they want to do,” an officer told the pair, in the video.
The family told NBC Miami that their checked luggage was not returned until a week later.
Ms Ifrah added the airline banned the family from all future flights, but did not explain why.
JetBlue said in a statement on Wednesday, the family was removed from the aircraft after threats were made to other passengers.
"After a verbal altercation that included physical threats and profanities against a nearby customer, the aircraft door was reopened and our airports team politely asked the customers to step off to discuss the situation.
"The customers refused repeated requests and our crew members deplaned the entire aircraft. Law enforcement escorted them out of the gate area and we provided a refund,” the statement said.
The airline noted the passengers were “not removed due to the actions of their children.”
“We are investigating whether the customers’ behavior warrants restrictions on JetBlue travel and we thank our crew members for their professional handling of this unfortunate incident,” the statement said.
