Spirit Airlines says adults, not young child in viral video, refused to comply with mask mandate

“We’re aware of incorrect information circulating about Spirit Airlines Flight 138 from Orlando to Atlantic City,” the Spirit Airlines said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “The flight was delayed due to adults who did not comply with the federal mask requirement. We allowed the Guests to continue on the flight to their destination after assurances of compliance.”

A video, which was two minutes and 20 seconds, spread on social media on Monday, showing a family being told by a flight attendant it would have to leave the plane due to failure to adhere to restrictions meant to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.

Around the nation, as more people get vaccinated, some states have loosened their mask restrictions. But regulations from the Federal Aviation Administration dictate that people 2 years old and up wear a mask on flights.

“What did we do?” the man in the couple asked, taking down his mask to speak. The flight attendant explained that they were being removed due to “noncompliance with the masks,” at which point, the man put his mask back on and said, “We’re wearing a mask.”

FAMILY KICKED OFF SPIRIT FLIGHT BECAUSE 4-YEAR-OLD WITH AUTISM WASN’T WEARING MASK

“She’s not wearing a mask,” the flight attendant said, pointing to the young child, who was eating.

“Was I wearing a mask?” the man asked another passenger, pulling his mask down again. “He was wearing it the whole time,” the person responded.

The man appeared in a separate video talking about what happened in his view of the situation.

“A lady over here heard someone on the phone before we even got on the phone that they were planning this,” he said. “The captain was OK with it. The whole plane was OK with it. But there was one African American that was not OK with this.”

Later, rumors spread that the flight attendant in charge of making the decision, who was reportedly a male, had been removed from the flight. The Daily Mail posted a story with the headline, “Male flight attendant is kicked off Spirit Airlines plane in Orlando after forcing all passengers to deplane when a two-year-old child refused to wear a mask.”

In another video, the man who was originally asked to leave said, “I think they removed that steward who wanted us off for no reason.”

A representative for Spirit told the Washington Examiner that such rumors are untrue and that while there was a crew change after the passengers were forced to leave the plane, the decision did not have to do with the mask incident.

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But before Spirit Airlines released its statement, many people on social media reacted to the original video with anger.

“Spirit airlines is utter trash,” said conservative activist and Parkland shooting survivor Kyle Kashuv.

Kelsey Bolar, a senior policy analyst for the Independent Women’s Forum, tweeted, “Good job [Spirit Airlines] kicking a pregnant mom, a 2-year-old, and a child with special needs off your flight. Upholding your reputation as the trashiest airline, at least!”

Daniel Horowitz, a senior editor at the Blaze, tweeted, “There is a God in heaven to deal with the human rights abuses of the sick people who run [Spirit Airlines].”

Others suggested that the decision may have been motivated by bias. The man was wearing a yarmulke in video of the incident.

“This is antisemitism. It’s not just ignorance,” said Twitter user Dan Ravicher. “A Jewish family kicked off a flight because supposedly their two year old was not wearing a mask while eating. Oh and the mother is pregnant. You are a disgrace [Spirit Airlines].”

“They always seem to target Jews,” Marc Lobliner, who identifies as the chief marketing officer of TigerFitness.com, said in a post on Twitter.