Southwest Airlines Removes 3-Year-Old Austic Boy, His Family From Flight After He Refuses To Wear Mask

KEY POINTS

Incident took place on a flight from Midland to Houston
The boy suffered from a sensory processing disorder
The family was removed despite them carrying a doctor’s note about the boy’s condition

Southwest Airlines removed a three-year-old autistic boy and his family from a flight allegedly because he refused to wear a mask.

Speaking to Click 2 Houston, Alyssa Sadler, the three-year-old boy’s mother, said she, her son and her one-year-old daughter were on a flight from Midland to Houston on Monday when the incident took place. The flight returned to the gate moments after it left because the boy refused to wear a mask.

"He was screaming. He was throwing a fit. He was screaming no, no, no. The mask is not going to work. He’s not going to wear the mask," Sadler told the outlet.

She said the boy doesn’t like his face being touched as he suffered from a sensory processing disorder. She added the family was asked to exit the flight despite them carrying a doctor’s note about the boy’s condition.

In a Facebook post Monday, she said, "When you get kicked off your flight because your 3 year old autistic child won’t wear a mask... looks like I’m stuck here in midland."

When one of the Facebook users asked her what "the other people on the flight were saying," Sadler said, "Not a single person stuck up for us... just watched us have to get off."

See posts, photos and more on Facebook.

Speaking to the outlet, Sadler said she had no problem wearing a face mask on board, however, exceptions should be made in certain situations.

"I think there needs to be something in place for children or even adults with disabilities who can’t wear a mask. They should have some kind of exemption," she told the outlet. A family member will drive Sadler and her children back home from Midland later this week.

In a statement to USA Today, Southwest Airlines spokesperson Dan Landson said, "We communicate this policy to all customers at multiple touchpoints throughout the travel journey, so we regret any inconvenience this family experienced. If a customer is unable to wear a face covering for any reason, Southwest regrets that we are unable to transport the individual."