Southwest has been sued by a passenger who was reportedly removed from a flight after taking off her mask to drink water. The traveler reportedly drank water periodically due to a documented medical condition, but flight attendants ordered her off the plane. The incident took place in January 2021.
Strict enforcement
According to a court filing, seen by Reuters, a 68-year-old passenger from Florida has sued Southwest Airlines for wrongful removal from a flight. Medora Clai Reading was flying from Palm Springs to Washington D.C. on January 7th, 2021, when flight attendants requested she is removed for not complying with mask rules.
However, Reading’s counsel claims that she only removed her mask to drink water periodically. The 68-year-suffers from low blood sugar and a heart condition and says she needs to stay hydrated. However, despite an exemption card, she claims that the crew had her removed for refusing to wear a mask.
The lawsuit notes that the flight attendants were “hostile” and said, “We don’t care,” when she offered to show her exemption cards. The crew member also accused Reading of talking with her mask off, which likely caused her removal from the flight.
To make matters worse, Reading’s suit claims that an unmasked pilot “laughed mockingly” at her while she was deplaned, while airport police sat her down and said that removals were “happening far too often” and “it is usually Southwest.”
No response yet
The suit was filed on Tuesday and Southwest has been summoned to court to defend itself. The coming weeks will see filings from both sides detailing their arguments and presenting new facts that may be material to the case. Ms. Reading is claiming a violation of the Air Access Access Act and other civil rights laws.
Notably, the incident occurred just a day before cases in the US hit their winter peak (excluding December). With tensions running high due to record violations, crews were likely on high alert for passengers who may potentially break mask rules. However, the suit has less to do with refusal to wear masks but rather when it can be taken off.
Cases remain high
The lawsuit comes at a time when US cases hit new highs every day. As the Omicron variant surges, airlines have been forced to cut thousands of flights daily due to shortages of crew, most of whom are isolating due to virus exposure. While Southwest has avoided the worst of this crisis, it did see operational issues over key holiday weekends last year.
With Omicron said to spread faster onboard than previous variants, masks are more important than ever, with airlines requiring medical-grade masks on select routes. For now, the pandemic remains nowhere near over for airlines.
What do you think about Ms. Reading’s case against Southwest? Let us know in the comments!
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