2-year-old wouldn’t wear mask — so family was removed from United flight, video shows

A woman said she and her husband were asked to leave a United Airlines flight from Denver, Colorado, to Newark, New Jersey, on Friday because their 2-year-old wouldn’t wear a mask on the flight.

Eliz Fulop Orban recorded a video of the incident, filming her husband, Erhard Orban, trying to put a mask on their daughter Edeline but she refused several times, KDVR reported. The family was planning to visit relatives in New Jersey.

“We just got kicked off the flight because our 2-year-old would not put on a mask,” she said in the video posted on Facebook.

United Airlines requires all passengers over the age of 2 to wear face masks throughout the entire duration of the flight, as well as while waiting in the airport.

Later in the video, an airline employee is heard asking them to exit the flight and Erhard responded that he was holding a covering to Edeline’s face. The same employee is seen telling the couple once off the plane that their luggage and the child’s car seat was continuing on the flight and that they couldn’t book them another flight.

Fulop told KDVR that they didn’t review United Airlines’ policy on face coverings before the flight, but she added this was the first time they’ve experienced the policy being enforced.

“We’ve flown with our daughter four times, this was going to be the fourth during the pandemic,” she said.

Fulop’s video shows an airline worker saying they were barred from flying for an undetermined amount of time. United Airlines later said in a statement to CBS4 that the family wasn’t banned from the airline, adding:

“The health and safety of our employees and customers is our highest priority, which is why we have a multi-layered set of policies, including mandating that everyone onboard two and older wears a mask. These procedures are not only backed by guidance from the CDC and our partners at the Cleveland Clinic, but they’re also consistent across every major airline.

We are investigating this specific incident and have made contact with the family. We also refunded their tickets and returned their car seat and bags.”

This story was originally published December 14, 2020 at 9:20 AM with the headline "2-year-old wouldn’t wear mask — so family was removed from United flight, video shows."