An Orthodox Jewish couple says in a federal lawsuit that they were kicked off an American Airlines plane because the pilot claimed, falsely, that they had offensive body odor.
He says he asked the stewardess for headphones and explained that due to issues with a flight the family was on the day before the crew had told passengers that if they need headphones on their the next flight to feel free to ask for them.
Adler, who wears a yarmulke, says the pilot butted in, stating: “I wasn’t on that plane and we don’t offer anything complimentary.”
Adler pulled out his cellphone after they were removed from the flight and filmed his conversation with the gate agent, and NBC News posted the footage in a Jan. 24, 2019 report.
Adler says on the video: “There’s a religious reason for some reason that they’re kicking me off the plane. We don’t have odor, OK? Nobody here has odor.”
As Adler demands a report from the airline telling him why he was kicked off the plane, the gate agent says: “Now. you told me for religious reasons you don’t shower. Is that what you said?”
Adler: “No, I didn’t! I shower every day. I said you kicked me off because of religious reasons.”
The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Miami Herald and the Times of Israel also published stories in January 2019 about the incident.
American Airlines did not immediately respond to a request for comment after business hours Tuesday. But it told media outlets at the time that it paid for a hotel room for the family then put them on a flight to Detroit the next day.
“Our Miami airport team members were concerned about the comfort of our other passengers due to the odor,” an American Airlines spokesman told the Miami Herald.
Other U.S. airlines have faced similar legal claims. A Nigerian woman filed a racial discrimination complaint against United Airlines after she was removed from a plane in Houston in 2016, allegedly due to body odor complaints.
The Adlers also seek attorney fees.