Former New York Sen. Al D'Amato was escorted off his JetBlue flight before takeoff Monday after he complained loudly about the crew and a six-hour delay.
The flight was scheduled to leave Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, at 1:40 p.m. but didn’t depart until 8 p.m. After a lengthy delay, some passengers were asked to move from seats in the front with extra legroom to seats in back to distribute the weight more evenly, the New York Post reported.
D'Amato, 79, reportedly got frustrated when passengers were reluctant to move and the captain didn't take action to ask specific passengers to comply. D'Amato then told the captain he was a "poor excuse" for a leader, The Huffington Post said.
After he started to chant "make them move," the crew asked D'Amato to deplane, the New York Post said. As he refused to exit, D'Amato told the passengers, “Stand up for what’s right and walk out with me.” One or two passengers did appear to leave with D'Amato, who was not allowed back on the flight.
The former senator was reportedly seen drinking before the flight.
A spokesman for D'Amato said the lawmaker had been up for 25 hours straight before boarding the plane, visiting a sick friend in Florida, the New York Post reported.
D'Amato's spokesman added the senator had apologized to JetBlue for his behavior and that JetBlue also apologized for overreacting to the situation, the New York Post reported.
The senator served from 1981 to 1999 and now owns a lobbying firm.
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