Former U.S. Sen. Al D’Amato (R-NY) was kicked off a JetBlue flight in Florida after complaining about his takeoff being delayed for hours on Monday night.
One of the passengers aboard the same plane captured part of the incident on video, which she posted online. The New York Post reported that the incident occurred on JetBlue flight 1002 from Ft. Lauderdale to John F. Kennedy International Airport.
“They’re throwing me off the plane because I complained about what they were doing,” D’Amato is heard saying in the video, in which security personnel could be seen escorting the ex-senator down the aisle. “Stand up for what’s right and walk out with me!”
Passengers aboard the plane could be heard yelling, “That’s not right!”
The Republican senator-turned successful lobbyist from Long Beach issued an apology on Tuesday in reaction to the news.
“Anyone who knows Senator D’Amato knows he speaks his mind,” the statement read. “But in this case he spoke after a long and demanding trip to Florida to visit an ailing friend, a five-hour airport ground delay, additional delays as the crew sought to deal with weight and balance issues, and then sleep deprivation.
“Jet Blue has apologized to the Senator for over-reacting and the Senator apologized for speaking his mind at a time when he clearly had left his patience at the gate,” the statement continued.
A JetBlue representative could not be reached for comment. The Post reported that passengers were each given $100 credit for the delay.
@AlDAmatoNY Former State Senator of New York was kicked off JetBlue flight just for speaking out… #FreedomOfSpeech #FirstAmendment pic.twitter.com/d5AwutQDav
— Layla D (@laylafd31) January 10, 2017
