Airplane returns to gate after two passengers refuse to wear face mask

A Delta Air Lines 747-400 airplane parked at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport in Seattle (Image: AP/Ted S. Warren)

An airplane returned to its boarding gate after two passengers refused to wear face masks amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

The Delta Air Lines flight returned to the gate in Detroit Metro Airport on July 23, as per ABC-affiliate WXYZ the day after.

Following the incident, the two passengers were removed from the flight, The Hill reported last Saturday, Aug. 1. After escorting the pair off of the plane, the flight departed again for its destination in Atlanta.

According to its website, the airline company requires all of its customers and employees to wear “a face mask, or appropriate cloth face covering over their nose and mouth throughout their travel.” Aside from wearing them on board a flight, the group also requires people to wear face masks in lobbies and boarding gates, among others.

Delta CEO Ed Bastia previously told the TV show “Today” on July 22 that the company would ban customers who refused to wear masks from flying with them.

“If you board the plane and you insist on not wearing your mask, we will insist that you don’t fly Delta into the future,” he said at the time. “We already have over 100 people we’ve put on that list.”

However, it was unclear if the two passengers on the flight to Atlanta were added to the no-fly list. Ryan Arcadio /ra

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