Caroline Scott says her family was asked to deplane after telling airline personnel that her 3-year-old son has sensory processing disorder and might find it difficult to keep on a mask.
A mom of a 3-year-old boy with sensory processing disorder says her entire family was kicked off a Southwest Airlines flight because she revealed that her son finds it difficult to wear a mask.
“It can make wearing a mask challenging, but he has worked so hard with us, with his occupational therapist, to be able to now keep his mask on consistently,” Caroline told Inside Edition.
Caroline Scott told Inside Edition that she notified the airline in advance of her son Orion’s condition when she booked a flight for herself, husband and two boys from Denver to Fort Lauderdale.
“The supervisor said, 'Can you 100% guarantee that you will keep the mask on your son?' And I said, ‘Of course,'” Caroline said.
The family was allowed to take their seats on the plane. Caroline says Orion was sitting with his mask on before takeoff. Then they heard their names being paged and were asked to identify themselves to the cabin crew.
“And then another supervisor came on the plane, in front of — this is a very full flight too, so probably 200 people— and said ‘I'm sorry, you have to get off the plane. The captain does not feel comfortable with your family flying today,’” Carolina said.
“We were deplaned because we disclosed my son's disability. So it was humiliating,” Caroline continued.
Southwest Airlines said they regret any inconvenience to the family and will be contacting them directly.
