Airline passengers kicked off flight after 2-year-old refuses face mask
A Colorado-based mother has slammed United Airlines after her young family were kicked off a plane after her two-year-old daughter refused to wear a mask.
Eliz Orban recorded footage of a crew member speaking with her husband as he was trying to keep the mask on their daughter, Edeline.
Ms Orban posted the clip on social media, which showed her husband telling the crew member that he was holding the mask on his daughter’s face but she refused to wear it without his assistance.
“We just got kicked off a flight because our two-year-old would not put on a mask,” Ms Orban, who was flying from Colorado to Newark, New Jersey, told the camera tearfully.
She went on to speak to US talk show Fox and Friends, telling them that the ordeal from start to finish was “humiliating” and “traumatising”.
She went on to say that “the staff was rude” from “the get-go”.
“We felt like we got no warning, no working with us, no asking questions, nothing to help in the situation,” Orban added.
“It was just like, ‘Oh, well your two-year-old is not complying, you guys are off the plane.’”
Ms Orban went on to say that she has “never been more confused in my life.”
She went on to say “everyone else on the plane was also just watching this and thinking, like, ‘What is happening?’”
Edeline is also seen to be visibly upset and refusing to put the mask on before an airline crew member asked the family to step off the aircraft.
Ms Orban’s husband responded with: “You gotta be kidding me. Why? We’re over here holding this mask on her face.”
The cabin crew member responds with: “I’m sorry sir. I gave you an opportunity. I’ve got to ask you to get off this plane.”
In a statement, a United Airlines spokesperson said the mask rule applies to all passengers over the age of two.
“The health and safety of our employees and customers is our highest priority, which is why we have a multi-layered set of policies, including mandating that everyone on board two and older wears a mask.”
“These procedures are not only backed by guidance from the CDC [The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] and our partners at the Cleveland Clinic, but they’re also consistent across every major airline.”