SoCal woman and friend claim they were kicked off a Spirit flight for wearing crop tops

LOS ANGELES (KABC) — A Southern California woman and her friend claim they were kicked off a Spirit Airlines flight for wearing crop tops and are now suing the airline for singling them out and embarrassing them.

The two women were on a flight from LAX to New Orleans on Friday.

Tara Kehidi of Dana Point said, “We were wearing crop tops… like a little bit of belly.”

They both had sweaters, but removed them before takeoff because the plane had no air conditioning.

That's when Kehdi said a male flight attendant approached them and aggressively told them to “put something on” before leaving.

“He tells us both to put on our sweaters. And then we're like, 'Oh, can we see a dress code? Like, is there a policy that says we can't wear crop tops on the plane?'

Carla Hager, a woman they didn't know, sat in front of them. He agreed that it was too hot on the plane and said that everyone took off their sweaters.

“I said, 'Well, if your body is inappropriate, then so is mine because I have a crop top under my sweater.' And I took off my sweater and I was like 'so if they kick you off the flight, they're gonna kick me and my baby off the flight,'” Hager added.

That's what happened. The three women and the child were kicked off the plane without a refund.

“We were a little embarrassed, too, because we felt like we were being treated like criminals, you know. Everyone on the plane was looking at us,” said Teresa Araujo of Costa Mesa.

Witnesses reached out to Spirit Airlines about the incident.

A statement from the airline reads: “Our contract of carriage, a document that all guests agree to when making a reservation with us, contains specific dress standards for all guests traveling with us. We are investigating the matter, and we are communicating with guests about their experience. .

The contract of carriage states, in part, that a guest may be required to leave an aircraft if that guest is “inadequately dressed, or whose clothing is of a lewd, lascivious or offensive nature.” It also states that if asked to leave, the guest will not be eligible for a refund.

The women then had to spend $1,000 on a Delta flight to New Orleans to celebrate the star's 30th birthday.

“They were treating us, honestly, like criminals – because we were wearing crop tops on the plane,” Kehidi said.

The two friends told Eyewitness News they offered to put their sweaters back on multiple times to avoid getting kicked, but the flight attendant told them it was too late. They say they are now keen to take legal action.