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'L Word' Star Leisha Hailey Kicked Off Southwest Flight for Kissing Girlfriend
Leisha Hailey/Image via Showtime
Southwest Airlines is building up quite the track record for kicking passengers off planes based on rules that seem to be created on the spot. Within the past year and a half, they've booted Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong for wearing baggy pants, and Kevin Smith for taking up too much space in his seat. Today, we can add one more to that list: actress Leisha Hailey took to Twitter to say that the company escorted her and her girlfriend off a plane after the two were seen kissing on board.
Hailey, who's also a member of the band Uh Huh Her, posted on the group's Twitter feed about the incident: "So we've joined the ranks alongside @BJAofficial and @ThatKevinSmith for being kicked off an @SouthwestAir flight, this time for being gay."
She goes on to say that she and her girlfriend were kissing when a flight attendant told them it was a family airline, and asked them to stop.
Southwest, whose Twitter handle describes them as "The LUV Airline!", first responded via tweet, apologizing and asking Hailey to get in touch to discuss the details. They then issued a statement on their website. It reads:
Initial reports indicate that we received several passenger complaints characterizing the behavior as excessive. Our crew, responsible for the comfort of all Customers on board, approached the passengers based solely on behavior and not gender. The conversation escalated to a level that was better resolved on the ground, as opposed to in flight. We regret any circumstance where a passenger does not have a positive experience on Southwest and we are ready to work directly with the passengers involved to offer our heartfelt apologies for falling short of their expectation.
Hailey responded on the Uh Huh Her Twitter feed, saying "@SouthwestAir I didn't realize a small peck on the lips is regarded as excessive and never once did your stewardess mention other passengers."
Southwest's tendency to kick people off their flights because they make random flight attendants other passengers uncomfortable dates back at least a few years. They were, after all, the airline that asked a 23-year-old college student to leave a flight in 2007 because she was wearing a short skirt and fitted top, and then later admitted that they don't have a dress code. (The student in question adjusted her outfit and was allowed to stay on the plane.)
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Of course, this all begs the question, if three celebrities in 19 months have made the news for being kicked off Southwest flights, how many non-famouses are getting the same treatment but we're just not hearing about it?
I guess the rest of us better consider how offensive we may be before snatching up those wanna-get-away tickets we've been eyeballing.
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