American Airlines Passenger Tries To Get NFL Star Kicked Off Flight For Being “Sick”

An American Airlines passenger has taken to social media to share a rather unfortunate incident that happened to him on a flight yesterday.

Desmond Howard’s seatmate tries to get him kicked off

Former NFL star Desmond Howard posted on Twitter to recount an unfortunate incident that happened on an American Airlines flight yesterday. According to Howard, his seatmate tried to get him removed from the flight because he perceived Howard to be sick.

To justify this request, the seatmate allegedly told an airline supervisor that “I am sure my status is higher than his, so you should remove him.” Howard wasn’t removed, though after taking off, he filmed a video, which he posted to social media.

During the video he explains that:

• After Howard’s seatmate requested that he be removed from the plane for being sick, he responded with “I’m sorry, are you a doctor?”
• Howard said that his seatmate could leave the plane and take another flight if he was uncomfortable, because Howard claims he was just clearing his throat
• Howard then explained the “status” card his seatmate tried to pull, while pointing the camera in his seatmate’s direction
• Howard finished by saying “the caucasity of him, unbelievable”
• Following this video, Howard’s seatmate allegedly asked to move seats

My take on this situation

Let me start by acknowledging that we only have one side of the story here. With that in mind, a few thoughts:

• I’ve certainly noticed a lot of people coughing during my travels in the past few months, but that doesn’t entitle me to decide who should be kicked off; furthermore, many of the people with the loudest coughs might just have some lingering symptoms from something they had a long time ago, and they’re no longer contagious
• There’s an irony to the seatmate being really concerned about the wellness of other passengers while wearing a cloth mask; at least protect yourself as much as you reasonably can if you’re concerned
• Goodness gracious, it’s disgusting to even suggest that a decision should be made based on who has higher elite status, especially when race is an added factor here; airline elite status really gets to some peoples’ heads
• It’s kind of hilarious and savage to film a video recounting what happened while seated next to the person who allegedly acted out of line; Howard definitely got the last laugh here
• In fairness to Howard’s seatmate (who I don’t have much sympathy for), filming other passengers without their permission is a violation of American’s policy

I think the biggest takeaway from all this is that next time the seatmate should wear a proper mask and mind his own business.

Bottom line

Most of us don’t like to sit next to sick passengers, but unfortunately that’s a risk we take when flying commercial. In these situations, the best we can do is wear a mask that offers a high level of protection, or even ask to be reseated, even if it’s to a far inferior seat.

What we shouldn’t do is demand that others be kicked off the plane, and justify it by claiming that we probably have higher elite status. I’m guessing this guy learned his lesson, though.

What do you make of this incident?