A California woman said an incident with JetBlue left her so stressed that her cancer returned shortly afterward.
Oksana Kiritchenko, 51, filed a lawsuit against JetBlue over the 2023 incident, in which she was reportedly denied flying with her emotional support French bulldog in first class.
She claims she had been in remission from stage 4 cancer until shortly after the confrontation with an airline employee, as first reported by The Independent.
The federal lawsuit claims Kiritchenko and her husband, Peter, 71, were subjected to “an inexplicable level of cruel humiliation and ridicule” as they attempted to return home from Florida last September.
The couple says they had paid a total of $4,295.60 for two round-trip first-class tickets and submitted the necessary forms to the airline to travel with a service animal, but were not allowed to do so.
A California woman blamed a flight attendant’s allegedly rude behavior for causing her to become so stressed that her cancer returned.
Kiritchenko says everything went according to plan on her way to Florida from Los Angeles, with dog Pier sitting at her feet inside a travel bag in the first-class area.
But as they prepared to board their flight back to Los Angeles, an airline agent approached the couple and asked if Pier was allowed to fly with them.
The suit claims Peter has a “severe disability that affects his ability to stand,” but the airline employee was unmoved when told of the couple’s health issues and “kept them standing for a long time.”
The employee eventually informed the couple that one of them would have to give up their first-class seat to fly with the dog, according to the lawsuit.
The filing states: ‘Plaintiffs had an urgent need to return home (Ms. Kiritchenko, being a cancer patient, had to be available locally in Los Angeles for her check-ups), so they agreed.
‘The plaintiffs boarded the plane with Mr. Kiritchenko sitting in the first class seat and Ms. Kiritchenko sitting in… economy class with their dog in her carry-on bag.’
However, as the plane was preparing to take off, a flight attendant handed her a bag that was too small for the dog, and the plane was ordered to return to the airport and the couple “kicked” off the flight.
The couple says they had paid $4,295.60 for two round-trip first-class tickets and submitted the necessary forms to the airline to travel with a service animal, but were not allowed to do so.
The couple was forced to wait for another flight the next day, buy new tickets on Delta Airlines and book a hotel room.
The lawsuit claims JetBlue caused the couple “unnecessary monetary damages” and accuses the company of negligence and violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The lawsuit adds: “These events caused Ms. Kiritchenko an enormous amount of stress. Upon returning home, she checked into Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles.
“Test results had shown that mean levels of tumor molecules (MTM/ml) had increased to 0.59. Several previous tests had yielded results of 0.00.”
The couple is seeking reimbursement for medical and hospital expenses, attorneys’ fees and monetary damages to be determined by a jury.
JetBlue has not yet commented on the lawsuit; the company has 21 days to formally respond to the claims.