Applause on planes is usually associated with a safe landing, but one family got a shock on Monday when other passengers clapped when their young son was removed from the flight due to allergies, according to Fox News. An Allegiant Airlines flight from Bellingham, Wash., to Phoenix took off without parents Christina Fabian and George Alvarado after their 7-year-old son Giovanni got hives and had to leave the plane.
"He began to get very itchy and he was scratching all over," Fabian told KVTB. "He started to get hives, so we informed the flight attendant who informed us that there's dogs on every flight and just smirked, which minimized his experience for me."
Fabian stated that this was the first reaction of this type that Giovanni had experienced and that while they were moved to different seats, medical authorities determined that it was unsafe for the boy to fly, according to WGNTV. Their presence was preventing takeoff and they were told that they would have to leave the plane, which is when Fabian claims other passengers behind to applaud.
"When we stood up and walked to the front of the plane, the [people] in the back of the plane applauded," she told KTAR News. "It was the flight attendant's attitude that perpetuated people's agitated behavior around us. It's just the comments she had made."
The family was reportedly heading to Phoenix because Alvarado has terminal cancer and wanted to visit family, according to KCENTV.
"As a dad I was just hopeless right there," Alvarado told KCENTV, "I just looked at the people clapping. I was just shaking my head, I was like man let's get out of here."
Allegiant Airlines has been in contact with the family and offered their apologies for the incident as well as for any inconvenience caused.
