Dana Holcomb, left, said he was kicked off an American Airlines plane after he was seated next to a support dog, which he is allergic to. (Picture: KWTX)

A black man has filed a lawsuit after he says he was kicked off a flight so a dog could fly first class.

Dana Holcomb, 53, is suing American Airlines for racial discrimination following the incident on a flight from Las Vegas to Austin, Texas in April.

Holcomb said he bought a first class ticket home after celebrating his birthday in Las Vegas, and had a connecting flight in Phoenix, Arizona.

He boarded the plane and learned he was seated next to a woman traveling with a support dog, which was an issue because he is allergic to dogs.


Holcomb said he began suffering from an allergic reaction within minutes of boarding the plane, KWTX reported.







CTX man ‘wrongfully removed’ from American Airlines flight EXCLUSIVE: “To be honest, it made me feel that I was less than a dog.”Dana Holcomb, a Central Texas man said he was kicked off an American Airlines flight and left to find his own way home.Another passenger aboard flight 691, Houston Attorney Jay Youngdahl, tweeted at American Airlines during the incident blaming discrimination for Holcomb’s removal. âBlack man removed from AA 691 in Phoenix. Looks like his offense was âtraveling while black,” the tweet said. Geplaatst door Hunter Davis op Zaterdag 20 april 2019

The woman offered to switch seats with others in the first class section, but no one on the plane volunteered – which is when a flight attendant and pilot got involved, he said.

Reginald McKamie, Holcomb’s lawyer, said: ‘At that point, (workers) told him you’re going to go to the rear of the plane or get off the plane.’

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Holcomb said that the pilot became ‘irate.’ Another passenger eventually offered to switch seats, but the pilot instead called security, according to Holcomb.

American Airlines security removed Holcomb from the plane, but left his baggage containing his medication on board, stranding him in Phoenix overnight, he said.

Holcomb told KXXV: ‘They left my medication. They didn’t even have the time, or took the time, to take my bags off the plane.’

Holcomb has filed a lawsuit against American Airlines seeking damages (Picture: Getty Images)

American Airlines has since issued a statement claiming Holcomb became ‘confrontational,’ which they say led to his removal – but some witnesses on the flight disagreed.

According to the lawsuit, two passengers have made sworn statements supporting Holcomb’s version of events.

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One witness, Jay Youngdahl, said he heard the pilot saying that Holcomb was likely to be a ‘danger,’ according to Newsweek.

The US Department of Transportation has certain protections regarding the travel of service dogs. They also have rules protection those with allergies, according to the Dallas Morning News.

American Airlines has even stated: ‘Federal regulations require American Airlines to transport service and support animals….In the case of an allergy, we work to re-seat the passenger further away from the service or support animal.’

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Holcomb said: ‘To be honest, it made me feel less than a dog.’

He is now seeking damages and said that he hopes to change discrimination policies on American Airlines.

McKamie said: ‘What American Airlines is doing is discrimination. They have repeatedly humiliated African American citizens by throwing them off the plane, leaving them with no way home, no hotel, just throwing them off the plane.’