Airline Removes Pregnant Woman For Being Sick In Barf Bag

A pregnant woman was removed from a Virgin Atlantic flight Saturday, after she felt sick just before takeoff. Billie-Jo Robinson, 28, who was a little over four months pregnant, was flying back to Manchester, England, from New York, with her sister-in-law and friend after a holiday in the United States, when she had the unpleasant experience.

She said takeoff was delayed for at least a couple of hours as the plane sat on the tarmac of John F. Kennedy International Airport, waiting for passengers who were yet to arrive. It was during that time she started feeling unwell.

"We were left waiting on the plane for ages because of missing passengers. It was really hot and I had really bad heartburn after having a McDonald's in the airport and felt a bit sick,” Robinson told Liverpool Echo.

She added that she had no indication she would be asked to leave the flight when she initially asked the cabin crew for a barf bag.

"I saw an air hostess with sick bags and asked her for one and I was sick a little bit - but not enough to leave my seat,” she said. “I asked the air hostess could she get rid of the bag and she asked was I okay to which I said I was fine and she gave me a bottle of water. It had been about 40 minutes since I had been sick and I was just sat reading my magazine, when a member of the cabin crew came up to me and said I needed to get off the aircraft.”

She claimed the flight attendant told her that a doctor on the ground had deemed her unfit to fly, despite never physically examining her or even meeting her.

In addition, the airline staff assured her and her companions they would be provided hotel accommodations, and that she would be taken to a hospital to be given a doctor’s note before being booked on the next flight.

"However when we got off the flight, I was told to go and collect our luggage, which was a 15-minute walk away and then drag a 22 kg (48 pound) case across the airport up escalators, bear in mind I’m ‘too sick to fly and need to go to hospital',” the pregnant children's home manager complained.

Next, the airline “couldn't find” the bag which contained her only bank card. When Robinson went to enquire about her missing luggage, she was told that it “wasn't their responsibility” and that the company would not be providing hotel accommodations for her or her companions.

As a result, they were stranded "on a cold airport floor" with $55 and a few travel cards for several hours. Eventually, they were put up in a hotel and a hospital visit was arranged. The airline's duty manager contacted her the following morning to tell her that she did not need a “fit to fly” note from the doctor and could avail the next flight.

Although Robinson did manage to reach Manchester after changing a flight, she said the experience made her scared of flying while pregnant.

“Me and my boyfriend went to Jamaica while I was pregnant and I was supposed to be going to Krakow, but I have cancelled that now. I don't want to fly anywhere else while I am pregnant. The whole ordeal was so stressful and when we got home I went to the doctors to check the baby was okay and both our heart rates were high,” she said.

She said that she wanted an apology from Virgin Atlantic and an explanation about what grounds the airline used to remove her from the flight.

The airline released the following statement regarding the incident: “The safety and wellbeing of our customers is our top priority. When Robinson became unwell we evaluated the situation with our independent medical experts and unfortunately she was deemed too unwell to travel. In line with our procedures as the customer had been sickness free for over 12 hours, she was deemed fit to fly the next day. We are truly sorry for any distress caused and are in direct contact with Robinson to resolve the situation.”