Frontier Airlines said they cancelled a flight from Florida on Sunday after a “large group” of passengers refused to wear masks — but the family involved claims they were booted simply because of a maskless baby.
The fracas took place aboard flight 2878, which was set to depart Miami en route to LaGuardia Airport at 7 p.m. until the disagreement forced all passengers to deplane and reschedule a flight for the next morning.
“Members of a large group, including adults, refused to wear masks as flight 2878 was preparing for departure from MIA-LGA,” Frontier Airlines wrote on Twitter late Sunday night.
“Repeated requests to comply with federal law necessitated their removal from the flight. The issue did not stem from a child under 2,” the statement said.
However, fellow passenger Hershey Greenbaum told The Post the child seemed to be the reason for the family’s removal.
“We were all on the plane when they [flight attendants] came on and saw the 18-month-old baby without a mask,” Greenbaum said.
In video footage of the incident, the father can be seen explaining that the child was under the age of two.
Greenbaum said other passengers came to the defense of the family and became “rowdy” when they were booted.
The parents told the attendants they would try to fit a covering on the baby, according to Greenbaum, but that not did not stop them from taking action.
“All the people on the plane were getting really mad and rowdy because, what are you going to do? It’s an 18-month old baby,” Greenbaum said.
Frontier Airlines did not respond to a request for comment.
The company said on Twitter they do not require masks on flights for children younger than 2.
“Most of them were saying ‘Don’t let them do this to you,’” Greenbaum said of the other passengers. “Most of the people were against it, Jewish or not Jewish, why are you picking on an 18-month-old kid?”
At least one passenger filmed part of the interaction, which was later posted to Twitter by the Orthodox Jewish Public Affairs Council.
Numerous passengers can be heard calling out the flight staff.
“What are you accomplishing?” one person says.
“You’re gonna pay the consequences,” another passenger can be heard saying.
“This is Nazi Germany,” a third person shouts.
Greenbaum said about 15 police officers responded to the incident.