A woman says she was thrown of a flight leaving London Heathrow for having an allergy to nuts.
Sophie Draper was expected to jet off to New York from the UK in December, but claims she was not allowed to fly.
The electrical engineer and PHD Researcher at Durham University says she was "discriminated against" by US operator American Airlines.
She was supposed to fly to JFK airport at the beginning of December, but was astonished at the way she was treated.
In a Twitter thread, she claimed American Airlines (AA) was a “dangerous airline for people with food allergies” and described the airline’s policy as “heartless”.
She tried to let them know about her allergy before her departure date, but says there was nowhere to inform them.
She arrived at Heathrow Airport in London with her boyfriend and was told at check-in to let staff know about her allergy.
On social media she wrote: “However, this is where things begin to unravel.
“Firstly, I was met with confused looks by AA gate staff when I told them about my severe allergy.
“They asked if it would be okay if people around me could still eat nuts (I informed them that my allergy is airborne, so no).”
She claimed a member of staff “bluntly” told them: “well, they’re not going to stop serving nuts on the aircraft… I really doubt that’s gonna happen”.
The couple, however, were walked to the plane to alert the head member of cabin crew.
“They were not at all accommodating,” Ms Draper says.
“They said, ‘we are contractually obliged to serve hot mixed nuts in first/business class’ and ‘it was against company policy’ to make an announcement about any food allergies on the aircraft.”
But Ms Draper was “stunned” the policy still in place and called it “heartless”.
They became “really concerned” at crew’s “blasé” manner and her partner asked bout anaphylaxis occurring while flying over the Atlantic.
But the crew response was said to be: “he knows how to use your epi-pen, right?”.
“We were told in no uncertain terms that our discomfort was, in turn, making them uncomfortable,” she claims.
“Without further discussion, they were already on comms getting our luggage removed from the flight and we were escorted off the plane.”
Ms Draper “broke down in tears” and said she “felt totally discriminated against for a health condition I have no control over”.
They were able fly on a later flight with British Airways instead which the couple say was "fantastic" in comparison from the service they had previously experienced.
“They stopped serving all nut products, made multiple announcements about there being a passenger with a nut allergy, and personally spoke with all passengers within a number of rows of me,” she said, warning fellow nut allergy sufferers to think twice before flying with AA.
An AA spokesperson told The Independent : “Protecting the health and safety of those who fly with us is our priority, and it’s essential to our purpose of caring for our customers as they travel.
"We regret that we disappointed Ms Draper and her travel partner during this trip, and our team has reached out to apologise and hear more about their experience.”
American Airlines does not serve peanuts in flight, bit it also 'can’t guarantee' customers won’t be exposed to nuts during their voyage.
It also urges passengers with allergies to take “all necessary medical precautions” before flying.
