A woman was forced to miss her Emirates Airlines flight after a flight attendant overheard her complaining about period pain to her boyfriend.
According to the World Health Organization, cabin crew who suspect that airplane passengers are ill will inform their captain, with a decision to be taken on whether the passenger is fit to travel or not. The incident highlights this guideline, though there are different views on whether the woman should have allowed to stay on her flight or not.
Woman Forced Off Emirates Flight For Menstrual Cramps
Beth Evans, a 24-year-old woman from the United Kingdom, with her 26-year-old boyfriend Joshua Moran, were onboard an Emirates flight from Birmingham to Dubai. Evans, however, was suffering from period pain, and complained about the matter to Moran.
A member of the cabin crew overheard her complaint and expressed concern over her condition. Evans insisted that the menstrual cramps were mild, describing it as "one out of ten" in terms of pain. However, the Emirates attendants insisted for Evans to deplane along with Moran, as the airline did not want to risk having her onboard for the seven-hour flight.
Despite saying that she was fine to complete the trip, Evans and Moran were forced to miss their £400 ($560) flight to Dubai just minutes before the aircraft took off, and had to spend £250 ($350) each to rebook their tickets.
"To be kicked off for period pains, it was madness." Moran said to The Sun in an interview. "They didn't have anyone look her over... They just contacted a medical team in the US and they said Beth couldn't fly."
Emirates Airlines Defends Decision
Emirates, meanwhile, denied the claim that a flight attendant simply overheard Evans complaining about period pain. In a statement made to Fox News, the airline said that Evans spoke to one of the flight's crew members to say that she was not feeling well due to discomfort and pain.
"The captain made the decision to request medical support and deplane Ms. Evans, so she could access medical assistance as needed," the airline said.
Emirates defended its decision to deplane Evans, claiming that it did not want to place her in danger in case her condition grew worse over the seven hours of flying time to Dubai.
The incident brings up the issue on how airlines should deal with passengers who are suffering from a medical condition. Unfortunately, due to the differing scenarios presented by Evans and Emirates, it is difficult to determine which side is in the wrong.
