Another airline is facing controversy over its treatment of a passenger. Terrell Davis, a former NFL player for the Denver Broncos and MVP of Super Bowl XXXII, was detained by the FBI in front of his family after asking a United Airlines flight attendant for a cup of ice on a flight from Denver to Orange County, California.
Davis recounted the incident on Instagram, explaining that he tapped the flight attendant on the arm to get his attention after requesting the ice for his son. The flight attendant allegedly responded by saying, “don’t hit me” and walked to the back of the plane. When the flight landed, FBI agents and local police arrested Davis, handcuffed him, and led him off the plane. The FBI’s Los Angeles field office confirmed to CBS News that Davis was briefly detained before being released.
Davis, who is Black, did not directly state that the incident was racially motivated but mentioned having “hard conversations” with his family about it.
“I refuse to stand by without speaking out on this disgusting display of injustice and deplorable treatment by United Airlines,” Davis wrote on Instagram.
This incident is reminiscent of a previous case where Black American Airlines passengers were removed from a flight over false accusations of “offensive body odor,” leading to a lawsuit and an apology from the airline’s CEO. Davis noted that his legal team is in contact with United Airlines.
In a statement to Quartz, United Airlines said, “This is clearly not the kind of travel experience we strive to provide, and we have reached out to Mr. Davis’s team to apologize.” The airline also stated that the flight attendant involved has been removed from duty while the matter is reviewed.