Spirit Airlines Won't Let Boy With Cancer Board
This Mom Wants Answers After Spirit Airlines Wouldn't Let Her Son With Cancer on a Flight
Posted by Talia Tallman on Monday, March 12, 2018
Talia Tallman, a mom from Delray Beach, FL, is looking for answers after Spirit Airlines refused to let her family board their flight to Los Angeles 10 minutes prior to the plane taking off. The Tallman family had an important mission: to get their 3-year-old son, Escher, to UCLA Health so he could attend a doctors appointment for spindle cell rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare soft-tissue cancer. They were on their way back to check in with Escher's surgeon when all hell broke loose in Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport on March 12.
The frustrated mom expressed her feelings about the situation in a now-viral Facebook post:
Got to the airport at 7 p.m. for our 9 p.m. flight. [We were] so far from the gate at 8:50 p.m. that [my mom] was the only one at the gate while we [were still getting] through security. She begged and pleaded for them to wait one minute and [told them] that Escher has a cancer appointment tomorrow with doctors. His medicine was in the [checked] luggage on its way to California they showed no compassion and left 10 minutes prior to scheduled take-off . . . Spirit Airlines you have shown atrocious service . . .
According to the Miami Herald, even though Talia and her family were running a few minutes behind, they still would've been able to make the flight, until, that is, the airline changed the gate on them at the very last minute. And to make matters even worse, she didn't have access to Escher's pain medication, which was well on its way to California.
The mom explained that the airline wouldn't wait more than 30 seconds for them even after her husband, Logan, started banging on the door to let them in. "They showed literally zero compassion," Talia told the Miami Herald. "That was really what was so upsetting to me is these people were being so heartless when they had the opportunity to make a big difference in our lives by letting us on the plane."
After getting wind of the situation, Spirit Airlines issued an apology but also noted that according to its records, it held the flight for 13 minutes in total and the Tallman family still wasn't at the gate 15 minutes before take-off, which is typically when airlines stop letting passengers on. "Our records show they were not present at the gate when the flight closed," the airline said in a statement. "Our team made every effort to hold the flight for as long as possible. Ultimately, the flight had to take-off to ensure a timely arrival for our other guests waiting on board."
When all was said and done, Spirit Airlines rebooked the family's flight for two days later and waived the fee, but that didn't quite cut it for the Tallmans. "He still had to go without pain medication," Talia said. "I gave him Tylenol, that's all I had."
