A BBC weather presenter whose family was kicked off a flight has said the ordeal was “humiliating”. Georgie Palmer, 49, her husband Nick Sollom, 48, and daughters Rosie, 12, and Annie, 14, were ordered off the plane after they told the crew Rosie was allergic to peanuts.
Staff on the flight from Gatwick Airport to Dalaman in Turkey refused to make an announcement to tell passengers not to eat peanuts, according to Ms Palmer.
The forecaster said she gently asked fellow passengers sitting around her not to eat peanuts and to pass the message on.
But Ms Palmer claimed the “angry” captain of the jet insisted they get off the plane before it would take off.
She told Good Morning Britain the experience was “absolutely humiliating” for her daughter. Ms Palmer added: “When he (the captain) found out I had spoken to the other passengers he was screaming at me from the cockpit. He was so angry.
“The next thing I knew we were told to get off the plane. It is really beautiful how every passenger on that plane was so wonderful, but nobody working on that plane showed one ounce of compassion.”
Ms Palmer added: “Rosie is in a terrible state about this. It has ruined her holiday. We don’t go away all the time. We maybe fly once a year and have never had problems with other airlines.
“If we had known that policy, we would never have booked with them. We have been through the website with a fine-tooth comb and there is nothing.”
She said there was no way to inform the airline beforehand and wondered how many people with peanut allergies would fly on SunExpress this summer not knowing the policy.
Ms Palmer said even if her daughter didn’t come into direct contact with a peanut, if someone ate one on board, then she could die.
The presenter said three days after what happened the family still hadn’t heard from SunExpress and the family’s insurance says the captain has the discretion to remove people for no reason.
A spokesman for SunExpress said: “We take the safety of our passengers very seriously. Shortly after boarding our flight from London Gatwick, the passenger raised a concern about one of his family group having a serious peanut allergy and requested an announcement to other passengers.
“We refrain from making these kinds of announcements as, like many other airlines, we cannot guarantee an allergen-free environment on our flights, nor prevent other passengers from bringing food items containing allergens on board.”
The spokesman said due to the “insistent behaviour” of the passenger to others on board that they should not consume nuts, the captain decided it would be safest if the family did not travel on the flight.
He added: “When this was explained to the passenger, he did exhibit aggressive behaviour towards our crew members and tried to gain access to the cockpit.
“To ensure the safety of our crew and our passengers on board, we cannot tolerate aggressive and unruly behaviour on our flights.
“Additionally, our website states passengers must notify us 48 hours in advance of any special care required due to a medical condition and no such notification was received from the passengers in this instance.”
The spokesman said the airline is fully aware this was an upsetting situation for the family and is taking the incident as an opportunity to conduct a review of the information provided during the booking process to ensure “more effective solutions” for passengers with allergies.
Mr Sollom denied behaving aggressively, but admitted to feeling irked by the decision. He said he knocked on the cockpit door in a bid to speak to the captain after being told the family’s bags were being removed from the plane.
Source: express.co.uk