American Airlines flight 893 was delayed overnight this week after teenagers on the plane refused to wear face masks while on board.
The flight was from North Carolina to the Bahamas and was scheduled to leave on Monday, June 5. American Airlines said that the flight was originally delayed because of maintenance issues with the first plane.
The airline had to send the passengers to a different gate at the North Caroline airport. However, “due to non-compliance with federal mask requirements, disruptive behavior and failure to adhere to crew member instructions, the Captain made the decision to deny members of the group boarding on the replacement aircraft.”
The flight was delayed several more hours. Luggage checked by travelers was taken out of the plane and there were other delays, according to American Airlines.
The flight had to be moved to Tuesday because after facing so many delays, the plane would have landed in the Bahamas after Immigration and Customs services closed.
“We expect our customers to comply with our policies when they choose to fly with us, and we take action when that is not the case,” said American Airlines in the statement.
The airline also said that the group of teenagers was playing music with inappropriate lyrics and using explicit language. The group was traveling to celebrate their high school graduation.
Breakaway Beach, a student travel company, claimed that due to the maintenance problems the airplane was facing, “some passengers including the students may have removed masks due to no air-conditioning/ventilation, quite unbearable conditions.”
All of the passengers, including the students, were allowed to fly to the Bahamas on a later flight.
