Passenger removed from Spirit Airlines flight for refusing to wear a mask

Passenger removed from Spirit Airlines flight for refusing to wear a mask

No mask, no service.

A Spirit Airlines passenger headed to Fort Lauderdale from New York on Friday was removed from the flight after removing his face mask, which are required by the airline as part of their coronavirus policy.

Videos shared to Twitter show law enforcement confronting the man seated on the plane.

"The whole plane is a witness, I didn't do anything," the unidentified man tells the Port Authority officer. "Tell me why I'm not flying."

A person in the background can be heard supporting the passenger saying things like "that's racist" and "they take their mask off to drink."

The officer continues to talk to the passenger letting him know that he needed to leave the flight.

"I've been sitting here waiting for you to come," the passenger tells the officer. "I'm going home to see my father who had a stroke."

The officer proceeded to ask the passenger: "What would you like me to do?" to which the passenger responded saying he wanted to stay on the flight.

Additional footage shows the man was eventually removed from the flight.

The man, who was flying from LaGuardia airport, took off his face covering and refused to put it back on, according to a statement from Sabrina Gaggia, a Spirit Airlines spokesperson.

"Ultimately, the man chose to deplane on his own instead of risking legal consequences," the statement read. "Spirit will always err on the side of caution when it comes to the health and safety of our Guests. Wearing a face covering is simple, it’s easy, and it’s critical to Spirit and the airline industry as a whole. We thank the thousands of Guests and Spirit Team Members who do their part each day to protect each other, and we will continue to enforce the use of face coverings on board our aircraft."

According to FlightAware, flight NK197 arrived to Fort Lauderdale an hour and a half late.

This isn't the first incident where a passenger got in trouble for refusing to wear a face mask while traveling.

In June, American Airlines temporarily banned a passenger who refused to wear a face mask and was subsequently kicked off a flight. Masks are required by the airline's coronavirus policy.

More: Your next American flight might be full as airline will no longer block seats in name of social distancing

"American Airlines thoroughly reviewed an incident on June 17 involving one of our customers, Brandon Straka. As a result of this review, Mr. Straka will not be permitted to fly American, as he failed to comply with our stated policy and crewmember instructions," the airline said in a statement.

"We are committed to protecting the safety and well-being of our customers and team members, which is why we strengthened enforcement of our policy for required face coverings on board. We expect customers who choose to fly with us to comply with these policies, and if necessary, we will deny future travel for customers who refuse to do so."

In a statement to USA TODAY, Straka declined to disclose any medical details publicly, instead striking out at mask policies and invoking the social unrest that has followed the death of George Floyd, who was killed on Memorial Day when a police officer knelt on his neck for more than eight minutes.

Contributing: David Oliver

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Spirit Airlines passenger removed from flight for not wearing mask