A BBC star was kicked off a flight after asking passengers not to eat peanuts because of his daughter’s peanut allergies, leaving the pilot furious.
British weather presenter Georgie Palmer, her husband Nick Sollom and their two children Rosie and Annie were invited off a SunExpress flight from London Gatwick to Dalaman in Turkey on Tuesday.
The popular TV personality shared a lengthy Instagram post criticizing the Turkish-German airline not only for kicking her family off the flight, but also for refusing to make a standard announcement asking passengers not to eat peanuts.
The 49-year-old said she instead had to ask passengers not to eat peanuts, adding that they were happy to do so.
But the captain reportedly demanded family leave before taking off.
“I thanked the beautiful souls on our plane for helping us,” she said in the Instagram post, according to The Sun.
“Many of them hugged, clapped and held our hands as we were forced to disembark.
“The captain and cabin crew of the SunExpress refused to make the standard announcement on behalf of our daughter.
“We kindly asked the passengers at the front of the plane to share our request.
“Row by row, all the passengers turned around to kindly ask the row behind not to eat nuts during the flight.
“It was calm, serious and with an immense feeling of solidarity and empathy.”
Georgie added: “There’s no problem with simple requests like this. People understand!
“We were thrown from the plane after the angry little captain shouted at us from the cockpit.”
She said they were discriminated against because they “just had an allergy.”
According to The Sun, the family booked into an airport hotel and took an easyJet flight to Dalaman the next day, costing them an additional $6,385.
Georgie told the Daily Mail: “The captain decided that due to my daughter’s allergy he didn’t want to fly with her on board.
“When he found out I had been talking to the other passengers, he shouted at me from the cockpit.
“He was so angry that the next thing I knew we were being told to get off the plane.
“The way we were treated was disgusting – no one working on that plane showed an ounce of compassion. »
A SunExpress spokesperson said: “We take the safety of our passengers very seriously.
“Shortly after boarding our flight, the passenger raised concerns about a severe peanut allergy in a member of his family group.
“They asked for an announcement to the other passengers. We refrain from making these types of announcements.
“Like many other airlines, we cannot guarantee an allergen-free environment on our flights.
“We also cannot prevent other passengers from bringing food products containing allergens on board.
“Due to the passenger’s pushy behavior towards other passengers on board, the captain decided it would be safer if the family did not travel.
“When this was explained to the passenger, he behaved aggressively towards our crew members and attempted to gain access to the cockpit.
“To ensure the safety of our crew and passengers on board, we cannot tolerate aggressive and unruly behavior on our flights.
“Our website states that passengers must notify us 48 hours in advance of any special care required due to a health condition.
“No such notification has been received from passengers in this case.”
The spokesperson added: “However, we are fully aware that this is an upsetting situation for the family.
“We are taking advantage of the incident to conduct a review of the information provided during our reservation process.
“This will ensure more effective solutions for passengers with allergies.”
According to The Sun, Sollom denies acting aggressively.
Many took to social media to weigh in on the debacle, and many users sided with the pilot.
“The pilot is a national treasure,” one person wrote.
“As they should have been,” wrote a second, referring to the family who were evicted.
“I would have kicked them out too,” agreed another.
A fourth wrote: “I think this story would be under Self Entitlement in the dictionary. »
– with the sun
News Source : nypost.com
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