Flying while Orthodox is no joke. People look at you and treat you differently when you stand out with religious attire. It may be unfair, but it does mean having to go above and beyond to avoid doing anything that could make you a target.
As I wrote in a recent alleged antisemitic incident on Lufthansa, “We receive reports on a near-daily basis from poorly treated passengers around the world. While we can’t investigate most of them, and we decline to write about many others after investigating, some make the cut for egregious behavior. This is one of those cases.”
How do I decide which stories to investigate and which don’t make the cut? I fly on planes all the time, my 46 month streak of boarding a plane ended in April. That means I know where airlines have poor procedures and customer service that can explain away allegations of antisemitism. And I apply Occam’s Razor, which states that the simplest explanation is the most likely explanation. Sure, that’s not always the case, but it’s a good rule of thumb.
Over the years, I have conducted in-depth investigations into alleged antisemitic incidents involving Ukraine Airlines in 2019, JetBlue in 2020, Frontier in 2021, Lufthansa in 2022 (which led to DOT action in 2024), American in 2024, JetBlue in 2024, and Lufthansa in 2025, among other similar incidents. Sometimes, antisemitic crewmembers out themselves on social media and Air Canada fired one such pilot in 2023, though an antisemitic United pilot continues to fly for the airline.
In 2021, I wrote about how to avoid getting kicked off a flight and last year wrote about how to handle reporting a safety incident to the crew.
On Friday, a Tweet went viral from a passenger who said he couldn’t see any explanation for why he and his family were denied boarding, when another passenger was allowed to board ahead of them, other than because they were visibly Jewish:
My wife and 3 kids were last in line to board . Person front of us in line got on the plane & we didn’t. We were not on standby , we had legitimate tickets & the crew couldn’t give us an explanation.
Was it because we were Jewish ? We didn’t get any other valid reasons for it… pic.twitter.com/noKlVRzoNf
— In Love With Dogs (@AnimalsAddicts) June 6, 2025
The passengers were connecting in Dallas while flying from Cancun to LaGuardia:
Cancun > DFW was delayed 10 minutes
DFW > LGA is where the incident occurred .– Bags were checked in
– No overbooking
– No standby
– No announcementsUnsure exact timing . There was a good amount of minutes left to board , but why does time matter when we were in queue &…
— In Love With Dogs (@AnimalsAddicts) June 6, 2025
I wrote my thoughts on the DansDeals Forums, namely that the video doesn’t show the full interaction and that we were missing context. But I speculated that the family’s seats could have already been given away to standby passengers and/or that the passenger that was allowed to board was a standby passenger.
If a passenger in this situation reached out to us, I would have responded by explaining why it seemed unlikely that this was an antisemitic incident due to those more likely reasons, but I also would have asked the airline for comment, which I did on Friday as well.
American responded with the information that confirmed my speculation,
“Our conditions of carriage state that boarding ends 15 minutes before departure and that seats are subject to reassignment if you’re not on board at that time. On April 21, this customer arrived at the gate 10 minutes prior to departure, with the remaining members of the party arriving 9 minutes prior to departure — after their seats had already been assigned to standby customers. Though we never want a customer to miss a flight, we were glad to re-accommodate these customers on the next flight to New York (LGA), and they arrived about an hour later than planned.”
I asked about the passenger who can be seen boarding, and American confirmed that the passenger had received the seat on a standby basis.
We reached out to @AmericanAir for their response, and what they told DansDeals confirms exactly what we suspected.
The family's seats were given away at T-15, which is the boarding deadline. The family arrived at the gate at T-10. The passenger allowed to board was flying… https://t.co/sm7y4hCVA1
— DansDeals (@DansDeals) June 7, 2025
That being said, the airline handled this ridiculously poorly, which is unsurprising for American. I often find their staff to be among the least friendly and most hostile in the business.
I have encountered hostile and power-tripping AA gate agents far too often. And never mind the gate agents that make you check-in carry-on bags even when there’s plenty of overhead space…
They could have explained what happened to the passenger and offered to rebook them. Instead, they just come off as hostile and unhelpful while speaking in industry jargon. American is certainly guilty of having some AAwful gate agents! The airline’s policy pressures to close the doors and get flights off on time compounds the issue.
Fact check, True:
.@AmericanAir is the Spirit of airlines
— Leibel (@Squilled) April 3, 2019
But, there’s no evidence that this was antisemitic in nature. The family lost their seats on the flight when they didn’t make it to the gate 15 minutes prior to departure. This kind of thing happens on a daily basis.
Be sure to arrive at your gate more than 15 minutes before departure to avoid your tickets being cancelled. On a connecting flight, that can be difficult, so opt for a longer connection if possible and don’t be surprised if your seats are given away in this situation. United has long been the best at holding flights for connecting passengers when possible via its Connection Saver tool, which I’ve benefited from personally, though American says it has started doing this more often as well.
Have you ever lost your seats due to arriving late at the gate?
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44 Comments On "Was Antisemitism A Factor In Family Being Denied Boarding In The Viral American Airlines Video?"
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i didnt lose my seat but showed up at gate early enough to make an earlier flight which executive platinum members are able to get on even once the flight isnt available for same day flight change there were plenty of empty seats and they still wouldnt let, spoke to a manager who told me gate agent has to do it but by then it was too late
Not surprising. AA is really bad at standby changes compared to other airlines and often says to go do it online, even when their app or website doesn’t offer the option.
This guy did not do us Jews any favors. He should post a follow-up apology in the same manner he made the boy-who-cried-wolf accusation.
This is honestly a terrible look for us and it can cause harm to Jews in the future. It’s a case of “the boy who cried wolf”. People need to take responsibility for themselves and not use anti semitism as a reason for being denied boarding due to their own lateness.
Yes, it is a bad look and it’s sad that this went viral when actual cases of antisemitism don’t.
That was likely because there was video in this case, versus in the case where AA kicked off an unrelated Jew from a flight because of the actions of another Jew where there was no video: https://www.dansdeals.com/more/news/airline-news/outrageous-american-airlines-ejects-17-year-old-orthodox-jew-flight-due-actions-unrelated-orthodox-jewish-passenger/
If not for videos in the 2022 Lufthansa incident, it would not have gone viral and the airline would not have been fined millions by the DOT.
But that being said, in his defense…
1. When you’re connecting flight is late, it doesn’t have to involve laziness.
2. The AA agents did a truly terrible job explaining why the person in front of them was able to board, why they were being denied boarding, and told them to go somewhere else to find another flight instead of taking care of it for them.
For someone who doesn’t know better, I understand the conclusion. Though had they reached out to other frequent flyers or posted on a place like the DansDeals Forums, they would have been told what really happened and that it was very unlikely to be antisemitism.
As an Executive Platinum member I fly often.
Dallas is known not to care, I have had the same situation whete I had the door shut in front of me, Jewish or not Jewish, EP or Basic Economy, no care in the world.
I let it slide as I can not change an industry, I do mention it in my yearly calls and they tell me they will address it, but the staff have been trained to do that at DFW.
That said, I have many great stories where I got on planes, got upgraded, was treated very well and take the good with the bad and give AA the best ratings for any American Airlines when it comes to treating their loyal customers, especially when flying with family.
For me, if I have a tight connection in DFW I expect the possibility if seeing the door swing shut while standing right there whether I am alone or with a visibly Jewish companion, they are equal opportunity sticklers to trying to move the plane out on time.
Agreed, best to choose a longer connection when possible if you want to avoid the door being slammed in your face.
It is a little surprising that they weren’t willing to wait and gave away a connecting passengers seat when they should have been able to see more or less where they were holding, although they technical didn’t have to.
I could imagination frustration clouding his judgement after probably running a marathon across an airport and being stressed about it.
Coming from CUN, they would have had to clear customs, so hard to know when they’re going to make it. The policy is to give away seats to standby passengers at T-15 in order to close the door around T-10.
But yes, stress and frustration certainly are a factor.
Not only that, but we’ve seen stories recently where AA has a newish policy to give seats away even earlier than that if their algorithm shows the passenger is unlikely to make it, and pax make it at T-15 to find their seats were given away earlier.
Nothing to see here. I agree that they likely arrived after T-15 after boarding closed with standbys being cleared. DFW-NYC (including alternates to JFK and LGA) is one of AA’s highest daily frequencies with upwards of 20 flights per day, so AA had little reason to hold the flight for the late connection. AA got the family on its way to LGA with minimal delay.
Frankly, I found the whole “this is unacceptable” whining uncalled for and obnoxious. The take-away here is to remain calm, take a deep breath and figure out your options. It could be a lot worse. I wouldn’t be surprised if the AA app had already populated the new flight booking while this Pax was standing at the gate shouting at the gate agents who were just trying to get their flight out on time.
Some years ago a chasid was made to leave a nearly empty plane by a female flight attendant with long dreadlocks for no obvious reason. The pilot said no other staff were available and that this attendant refused to fly if the chasid remained.
What became of this, do you know?
I think it was AA
I haven’t heard of that story, but again, without video evidence or unrelated witness testimony, there’s very little that can be done to prove something nefarious happened.
I was traveling out of MCO with children many years back. We arrived at the gate exactly at T-15 due to being held up by TSA at security (they were wiping down the carriage) when they closed the door on us by the gate . SW put me on standby but flights were full and was running around like a chicken without a head trying to get onto a flight but eventually they rebooked us the following day. We had to book a hotel near the airport and stay overnight.
We were connecting through MIA on an American Airlines flight and had been sitting at the gate for over 3 hours waiting to board. When boarding finally began, we had our tickets scanned and were walking toward the jet bridge—just steps away—when a gate agent abruptly closed the door and announced that no one else would be boarding. Our boarding passes had already been scanned! The woman who scanned them looked visibly confused as the other agent shut the door without warning.
It was still a few minutes to the 15 minutes before, and several people were behind us, including a man on crutches. No explanation was given. It honestly felt like the agent was just eager to head to her lunch break, especially since the plane sat at the gate for quite a while afterward.
We were traveling on a single itinerary through the airline, and this caused us to miss the event we had flown for, since there were no other flights available that would arrive by early evening. Lesson learned: even if you’ve been at the gate the whole time, don’t assume boarding will be handled properly. Get in line early—no matter how long it is—because you never know when a gate agent might make a bad judgment call.
If you were at the gate before T-15 and were not allowed to board, that is called involuntarily denied boarding, and the airline must compensate you for that in cash, typically at 4 times what you paid for your flight.
Document the time with photos/videos if possible and ask for cash IDB compensation from the gate agent and/or the airline’s airport station manager, or email the airline for IDB compensation.
If you are denied cash IDB compensation, file an informal and/or formal DOT complaint as needed.
The other agents (not the frustrated woman who slammed the door) felt so guilty that they were happy to rebook us on another flight while standing at the gate desk. The problem was no other flights made it in time even on other airlines or nearby airports.
We were so caught off guard and never imagined that after having the boarding passes scanned and walking towards the gate door that it can be closed!
Gate agents on a power trip is a common occurrence, especially in MIA.
You should still file for IDB compensation.
Noted for next time 🙂 as this experience was 4 years ago (unless there is no expiration on these things?)
At the time I remember trying to Google what my rights were and couldn’t find anything. I should’ve definitely videoed the experience. It would be like in the video above if after scanning the girl through another agent comes and closes the door on her, as that’s what happened to us.
Has anyone ever heard of the door being closed on someone whose boarding pass was already scanned and was being allowed to board?
I gotta say… I’m pleasantly surprised by the comments here. Gotta be careful crying wolf.
Personally, I prefer Hanlon’s Razor to Occam’s.
Never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by stupidity.
Both are valuable and usually valid assumptions. 😀
Gell-Mann amnesia is another favorite of mine.
I have to agree that I don’t see evidence that this incident was Antisemitism. Could they have been nicer? Yes. But no evidence of discrimination on this video.
Then why didn’t they just say that?
How do they count arriving to the gate in time?
Are you ok if you on the line to board before T15? What about if there is a very long line to board and I am sitting on the benches waiting for the line to move along, can they denye entry to the line past T15?
Make sure to be in line before T-15.
on the flip side. I was traveling from ord to lax on united. The tram broke down and we were stuck on it for 1.5 hours. We have to run to check in through security and to the gate at terminal 2 at ord which is about a mile away. I ran ahead of my family got to the gate as the doors were about to be closed. They waited an extra 5 min for my family to catch up. on board we were trying to get to our seats and the staff told us to sit anywhere and even brought us water as they saw us out of breath. Best service I ever had
No question that United is friendlier than American in this regard.
Yes. we were once a late for a flight that was a 2-leg flight to California. Missing the first flight meant we wouldn’t make our connection. However, as the weather was very stormy, the kind gate agent was very considerate and rebooked us for a direct flight to LAX, but a good few hours later. We sat chilling in the airport lounges, and boarded about 5 hours later. Surprise? The connecting flight had been delayed and hadn’t yet arrived in LA when our direct flight landed. We had a pleasant, direct flight, no stopovers and made good time. Kol akava letova. It’s an important lesson. Yes, do your hishtadlus to make the flights you have booked. But if something happens to prevent you from getting on, remember, kol akava letova.
EP here.
Recently cancelled a basic economy global ticket, despite American stating there was $100 charge they refunded in full.
I rebooked in main for $200 more (different return flight ) was checking stuff a few weeks later, I saw that the ticket went down by $100. Called AA, they repriced ticket, credited my travel bank etc and ensured I kept my SWA outbound in business .
Agent also advised that the original earlier flight had tons of business availability and I could upgrade for I think 25k points and 200 or a SWA (I think they charge for Europe outbound )
I agree with the others here, I’ve had really crappy experience with AA. Especially as Dan mentioned, gate agents forcing me to check in my carry on only to get to my seat and see plenty of overhead bin space .
Who you gonna call? Ghostbusters? It’s life… It’s really effing annoying especially when you planned to land and get right away somewhere and you find yourself waiting by luggage carousel.
Re; the above story. I was flying to my sister’s wedding in NY post face surgery, the flight was delayed and I went to bathroom to change the dressing etc .
Got to gate to find that although flight was delayed, they boarded at original time and gave my seat away
I have had gate agents call my cell asking if I was coming before they gave away seat.
Was this all booked thru American and was there enough time from when the first plane landed till the second plane took off. If it’s a connection I can’t see the logic of how they could give their seats away
Even if you book from AA and are on a connection, they will still give your seats away at T-15. That’s the published rule.
Book a longer connection to avoid that.
I was on a delayed El Al flight to London, so we ran through Heathrow (why are connecting flights on the other side of the longest airports?) and collapsed as the doors closed to the Virgin Atlantic NYC flight even though it hadn’t taken off yet. The staff was very apologetic and accommodating to put us on the next NYC flight and even walk us to the gate. And at least they explained to us why they couldn’t just open the plane again even though it was sitting right there! Yes, right there! Just open the doors! Ok, that’s life.
So for those who are saying they should choose a longer connection, maybe they should choose a two air connection, a 3-hour connection, maybe a 6-hour connection is good enough with American Airlines? While it is true, if they have rules about 15 minutes before departure which hopefully are clearly spelled out, at some point the airline has to take some responsibility.
The airline takes responsibility in putting you on the next available flight, but if you book a shorter connection, you take the risk of misconnecting and needing to wait for the next available flight
A 3 hour connection makes more sense than a 1 hour connection with all the flight delays we see these days. A short delay will cause a misconnect, especially because you need to be at the next gate before T-15.
It’s also a question about your risk tolerance. When traveling by myself, I will book short connections because I know the worst case scenario is I need to take a later flight and hang out in the airport for a few hours, but it’s worth the hour it will likely save me. When traveling with my kids, I won’t do a connection under an hour (and if there’s an option between 90-130 minutes that’s the sweet spot) because I know it takes longer and the risks of having to get a hotel room that fits the whole family are not worth it.
I was on a flight from CLE to LGA with Delta last week. The Departure was scheduled for 7:30. I got a call from the gate agent at 7:12 just about when I walked in to the terminal if I was still coming on this fligth I told her to please wait for me and I saw her 5 gates away waiting for me. I waived to her and she waved back and waited till I arrived at 7:20. Sometimes gate agents do the right thing. I was very pleased as it was the last flight out for the night.
Impressive!
AA is really falling far behind Delta and United…
I just flew AA Phx-JFK I was assigned middle exit row seats at the gate after my connection, then gate agent announced looking for 4 volunteers to move to middle exit row seats, even though I went to the counter and even again confirmed my seat with the agent the agent still went and changed my seat somewhere in the back of the plane without notifying me about it. When I went back to the counter to ask the agent about it, she said too bad this is what I did and I’m not changing it.
Needless to say I was wearing a hat and jacket, so I wouldn’t be surprised if that’s why she made issues
Flew through a small airport, 8 gates. By security, i was running late and the TSA guy says to me, dont worry, they will check here (at the security checkpoint) to see if there are any stragglers before they close the door.
Small town, USA
@Dan where can i look up or find information regarding taking video of any incidents, is it legal or appropriate?
i have seen once where the airline employee told the passenger “do not record” (it was during covid)
can we just record everywhere during check-in-boarding-on the plane?
THANKS
It is legal in the US to record in public settings. But it may escalate the situation, so doing it in a hidden way if possible is the best option, even if it means you don’t see what’s happening the entire time.
I had a “great experience” with JetBlue in august, I am Mosaic 4 and was flying out of HPN 6:30AM flight I got to the gate 6:15 which was still 15 min before departure time and the gate agent closed the door and wouldn’t let me on.
I had a similar story quite a few years ago with AA. I sued them and was relentless until we settled for the price of the tickets I purchased on United as well as food we had delivered to us in the airport. Not much but felt good not to let them get away with denying an orthodox family boarding when they allowed at least 10 passengers after us board.