An NFL legend was handcuffed on a United plane and barred from flying. Weeks later, a flight attendant involved in the incident has left the airline.
NFL Hall-of-Famer Terrell Davis took to Instagram to say that he had been placed on a United 'no fly' list. The airline said the ban was lifted.
Ron Schwane/AP
- Terrell Davis said he was handcuffed and removed from a United Airlines flight and barred from flying.
- United apologized, rescinded the ban, and said the flight attendant is no longer employed by the airline.
- Davis said in a series of Instagram posts that he was "humiliated" and "embarrassed" by the incident.
A United flight attendant involved in an incident with NFL Hall of Famer Terrell Davis is no longer employed by the airline, it confirmed to Business Insider Wednesday.
Earlier in July, Davis said in an Instagram post that he was handcuffed and removed from a flight to California on July 13.
That came after an incident in which Davis, a two-time Super Bowl winner, said he lightly tapped a flight attendant on the arm after his son got no response when he asked for a cup of ice. Davis said the employee shouted, "Don't hit me," before hurrying away.
When the flight from Denver landed, he said a number of FBI and law enforcement agents escorted him off the plane in front of his family without an explanation. Davis said the officers determined that the accusation was inaccurate during questioning.
On Tuesday, more than two weeks after the incident, Davis shared an email from United informing him that he had been placed on its 'no-fly' list, and was not permitted to fly with the airline until an incident review was carried out.
A spokesperson from United Airlines told Business Insider on Wednesday that Davis had been sent the letter the "day after the incident."
"It was generated due to the report of the flight attendant - who is no longer employed by United. The day after the letter was sent, we discussed with Mr. Davis' team that it had been rescinded," United continued.
"We have apologized to Mr. Davis for his experience and continue to review our handling of incidents like this to protect our highest priority - the safety of our customers and crew."
Davis said he was "humiliated, embarrassed, powerless, and angry" because of what had happened.
His lawyer, Parker Stinar, told CNN Davis only became aware that his ban had been rescinded after his post on Instagram Tuesday, and said United's assertion it communicated with his lawyers regarding the ban's withdrawal was "blatantly false."
"Engaging in tactics in an attempt to discredit the timeline of events is worrisome, to say the least," Stinar said.
Davis wrote in his social media post on Tuesday: "I demand a thorough and proper investigation into the flight attendant who blatantly lied and placed undue harm on me and my family."