A Florida man was booted off a plane before takeoff after airline workers failed to appreciate his unorthodox choice of face mask: a red thong.
Video footage captured the moment United Airlines staff confronted Adam Jenne about the brightly-colored women’s underwear covering his nose and mouth as the Washington, D.C.-bound flight from Fort Lauderdale prepared to depart Wednesday morning.
“You’re going to have to come off the airplane. We’re not going to let you travel,” a flight attendant says in the clip recorded on a passenger’s cell phone.
“Why?” Jenne asks. “You’re not in mask compliance,” the attendant replies.
Jenne, 38, of Cape Coral, later told NBC 2 that he found the mask requirement on planes absurd.
“It’s all nonsense,” Jenne said. ““COVID doesn’t know that we’re at cruising altitude. It’s stupid. The whole thing is theater.”
He also said this wasn’t the first time he’d worn his thong-cum-mask aboard a plane to protest the rules.
“Every single flight has been met with different reactions from the flight crew,” Jenne told the news outlet. “Some with a wild appreciation, others confrontational.”
Jenne’s mask stunt struck a chord with other passengers, some of whom even exited the plane with him to show their support.
(Twitter)
“Did he just get kicked off for wearing a mask?” a man asks staff in the video after Jenne’s expulsion, before adding, “I’m out of here, forget it. I’m out of here.”
Undeterred, Jenne said he planned to don the red panties again on Thursday when he is due to fly with another airline.
“Hopefully, Spirit Airlines has a better sense of humor,” he said.