A family’s travel plans were abruptly halted at Shanghai Pudong Airport when airline staff became suspicious of insect bites on their young son’s leg. Jonathan Arthur and his wife Xun Sun were en route to London Heathrow for a family wedding. As they prepared to board, they noticed the bites on their one-year-old son, Joseph, and proactively asked British Airways staff at the gate desk about purchasing allergy medication as a precaution.
The family claims the check-in desk assistant contacted a medical advice hotline which reportedly advised against allowing them to board, citing concerns that the rash around the bites could be a reaction to Joseph’s mild peanut allergy, potentially worsening during the flight. Staff then informed the parents that Joseph needed a ‘fit to fly’ letter from a doctor. The family described being escorted away from the boarding gate, making them feel “…feeling like criminals.”
The family subsequently re-booked flights for that evening with a different airline, which did not mandate a ‘fit to fly’ letter, forcing them to wait the entire day at the airport. The insect bites reportedly vanished within 10 to 15 minutes after applying a bite cream and did not cause Joseph any further issues. Jonathan stated, “It was nothing more than swollen bites.”
Jonathan recounted that upon seeing the bites, the desk staff asked numerous questions, leading the parents to mention Joseph’s mild peanut allergy. He explained:
The medical staff at the airport said to apply some ointment and wait 10 minutes – which we were happy to do. But the BA staff said we needed to call their medical advice line. They thought his peanut allergy was the cause, so they didn’t want to take the risk. His bites were actually going down by this point, and my son was completely fine. But as we were speaking, staff were already unloading our suitcases. We were treated like we had done something wrong.
The family was traveling on May 1st for a wedding scheduled for May 3rd, having paid £3,000 ($4,000) for their return flights two weeks earlier. The four bites, located on their son’s leg, back, and arms, were surrounded by a pink rash and were slightly swollen. Before even going to the airport, they had sent photos to an online doctor who confirmed they were insect bites and recommended antihistamines. This prompted their inquiry about an airport drugstore. Jonathan suspected the cause, said:
The bites just came out red because of the heat, and because he had a nappy on rubbing against them. We thought there might have been bedbugs in the place we stayed – and there were lots of mosquitos around too. We just thought we’d pick up some allergy medicine to be on the safe side.
According to Jonathan, the airport’s own medical team, who were not BA employees, suggested applying the bite cream the family had and said that if the bites subsided in ten minutes, they would be fine to fly. However, he claims the BA medical adviser on the phone overruled this on-site assessment. Despite the family’s protests that the bites and rash were unrelated to Joseph’s mild peanut allergy, they were told they could not board without a fit-to-fly letter. “BA just told us we couldn’t fly, gave us a case number and someone to contact about a fit-to-fly letter,” Jonathan stated. “We knew the rash was nothing to do with the peanut allergy – the bite was already going down after we put the bite cream on.”
Now, the family is attempting to claim a refund from British Airways and their third-party booking agency. Jonathan expressed his deep dissatisfaction with the situation:
We felt like criminals — like we had done something wrong. I find it strange that someone else in a different country can speak to an airport staff member who isn’t a medical professional, and diagnose and refuse boarding, without seeing the rash. When you pay for a service you expect to be treated like a customer, not like a hinderance. It felt like they thought ‘they’re not flying, just get rid of them’.
In response to the incident, a spokesperson for British Airways commented:
We take the safety and well-being of our customers very seriously and do everything we can to support them when issues like this arise. This includes accessing specialist medical advice to assess an individual’s suitability to travel, which is what happened in this case. Whilst we appreciate our customer was disappointed with this decision, we never compromise passenger safety.
Has a family member ever been removed from a flight due to food allergies? Have you ever had to rebook a flight due to the airline’s policies regarding food allergies? Let us know in the comments section.
I would think that despite the flight delay frustrations, it would be better to wait until the swelling subsided. The worst possible scenario would to be in the air and need emergency anaphylaxis medical treatment. There may have been a limited supply of epinephrine in the parent’s carryon bag, but no IVs, hydration fluids, airways, or extra Epi on the plane. Ever hear of a biphasic reaction?
Didn’t know there was such a thing as a “mild” peanut allergy.
This is exactly what happened to me when I was going to Florida to see my father when he was gravely ill. They would not allow my son who was 13 at the time to fly on the plane. I called in advance and even called the day before departure to make sure they were aware of my son’s severe peanut allergies. When we arrived they had no problem until one of the flight attendants said I have peanuts and I have all intentions to eat them. My son was crying and my 16 year old daughter was saying are you kidding? My mother just told you she would buy you anything else for you to snack on. It’s a two and a half hour flight. With that the pilot also came out and informed me that if my son has an a problem breathing he will not stop for an emergency landing. I never received my money back for the flight and thank God a security guard was there to witness horrific incident and called jet blue and got us on a plane to see my dad before he passed away. I wrote a letter stating what had happened and I was told it was the pilots right to refuse to have my son on his plane. I never received a refund for the 3 seats even though we were told my son could not board because the flight attendant must have her peanuts. I hope and pray you will get what you deserve. Nobody should be punished for having a severe allergy.
Always err on side of caution.