Airline apologises after Ukrainian amputee soldier removed from flight

Low-cost airline Wizz Air has apologised after it would not allow a wounded Ukrainian soldier to travel on one of its flights.

In videos shared to TikTok, the unnamed man can be seen speaking to cabin crew at the front of a plane bound for Warsaw, Poland, from Tel Aviv, Israel, where, according to reports, he had been receiving treatment after losing his leg fighting against Russian troops.

Despite being allowed to board the plane, he was asked to leave before the plane took off.

The TikTok user who uploaded the clip wrote in Russian that the man was “crying and yelling” while asking how he would be able to get home. He allegedly showed the cabin crew the inside of his bag, in which “there were only gifts for his family, which for sure had been waiting for him for a long time”, wrote @mbbddk, adding: “I’m sorry, random man from the plane. You are a hero.”

The discussions lasted more than 90 minutes before the passenger was escorted off, according to Mail Online, which quoted independent Belarusian media outlet NEXTA’s report that the man was removed as he was unable to sit in his seat properly due to his prosthesis.

Wizz Air told The Independent: “We apologise for the upset caused regarding a passenger on our Tel Aviv flight to Warsaw recently.

“Safety is our number one priority, and it is our crew’s responsibility to ensure that all passengers are fit to fly or are accompanied by someone to support them. If there is any indication that a passenger has a medical condition that might put them at risk while flying, we are obligated to deny boarding.

“To be clear, we would never discriminate against someone on the grounds of a disability and regularly fly passengers with prosthesis. In this instance, it was a difficult but necessary decision taken with the passenger’s safety in mind. He was provided with water and somewhere to sit while waiting for assistance from airport staff.”

Wizz Air was unable to confirm whether the passenger had been able to complete his journey.