JetBlue says the name of a NJ toddler prompted them to remove an 18 month old toddler from a Newark-bound flight even after the Transportation Security Administration cleared the family for takeoff.

18 month old Riyanna, the toddler kicked off a JetBlue flight over terror c
loading...

“It was that name” JetBlue spokeswoman Tamara Young tells the Star-Ledger, that caused them to remove Riyanna and her parents off the plane in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.

The TSA had approved the entire family to board the flight.

 

“A customer’s boarding pass was flagged in our system as being on the No Fly list,” according to a statement issued by the airline this morning.

Young defended the airline’s action, explaining that “When uncertainty arises, we err on the side of caution, follow protocol and do not assume,”

The airline has “redundant systems” in place that can help it identify passengers who could pose a security risk said Young. No airline has access to the TSA list of no-fly names.

Meanwhile, WPBF TV reports the unidentified family has left south Florida for New Jersey but did not say how they got home. The family says they  have not yet received an explanation directly from the airline for what they describe as a  “humiliating” experience.

 

 

More From 92.7 WOBM