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Although UFC champion Khabib Nurmagomedov says he’s not sure why he was escorted off of a Frontier Airlines flight over the weekend, the company in a statement to National Post says it’s because he was not in compliance with requirements from the Federal Aviation Administration.
The former lightweight fighter, who retired undefeated in 2021 and was later honoured in the UFC Hall of Fame, is a Muslim from Dagestan, Russian, CBS Sports reported. On Sunday, he posted on X after a video circulated online of an incident where he was removed from a flight. In the post, he wondered if he was kicked off due to his race or nationality.
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In the video, Nurmagomedov spoke to various people who appear to be airline staff members. The disagreement was reportedly about whether Nurmagomedov should be seated in an exit row, per the Daily Beast and Forbes.
A staff member suggested that Nurmagomedov switch his seat because the flight attendants “are not allowing you to sit in the exit row.” If not, the woman can be heard saying, “you’re going to have to get off this plane … because they’re not comfortable.”
“Lady who comes to me with questions was very rude from the very beginning, even though I speak very decent English and can understand everything and agreed to assist, she still insists on removing me from my seat,” wrote Nurmagomedov on X.
“What was the base for that, racial, national or other one, I’m not sure. But after 2 minutes of conversation, she called security and I was deplaned from this aircraft, after 1.5 hour I boarded another airline … and left to my destination.”
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He continued: “I did my best to stay calm and respectful as you can see on the video. But those crew members could do better next time and just be nice with clients.”
In an emailed statement to the National Post, the airline said the flight from Las Vegas to San Francisco was preparing for takeoff on Jan. 11 when a flight attendant “initiated the customary briefing for exit row passengers.”
“Customer Khabib Nurmagomedov, who was seated in an exit row, was asked multiple times if he was willing and able to assist in the event of an emergency. According to the flight attendant, Mr. Nurmagomedov did not respond, despite repeated attempts, which placed him in non-compliance with FAA requirements,” per the statement from Frontier Airlines.
“As a result, he was asked to move to a different upgraded seat which he refused to do. Therefore, in accordance with airline and FAA policy, he was asked to deplane. The decision to deplane the customer was in no way related to his ethnicity and we have refunded him and his traveling companions for their flights.”
The airline added: “The video circulating on social media does not show the initial interaction between Mr. Nurmagomedov and the flight attendant, in which the flight attendant said Mr. Nurmagomedov did not affirmatively respond to assist in the event of an emergency. Instead, it shows a later interaction after a gate agent entered the plane and reiterated the option to be reseated.”
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