- A lawyer's family was kicked off a
British Airways flight from London to Turin, per MailOnline. - The outlet said the family's nanny had been booked in
business class but the flight was oversold.
A top British lawyer was ordered off a British Airways flight with his family last week after an argument with the cabin crew about their nanny's seating arrangement became heated, according to MailOnline.
Charles Banner, 41, and his family, including two children, ages 1 and 4, were escorted off the flight from London Heathrow to Turin, Italy, by police officers last Thursday, MailOnline reported.
The flight was grounded for 90 minutes because of the argument between Banner and the cabin crew about his children's nanny not being able to join them in business class, MailOnline said.
Banner said he had booked the nanny in business class so he and his wife could work while the nanny looked after their children, per MailOnline. Banner is a member of the Queen's Counsel — a legal advocate appointed by the Queen.
But British Airways downgraded their nanny because the flight had been oversold, the airline said.
Banner has accused British Airways staff members of being "rude" to him when he asked the cabin crew whether the nanny could sit in a spare business-class seat. The airline insisted there was no extra seat in the cabin.
The disagreement apparently became heated, and, per MailOnline, the pilot insisted the family be removed from the flight. The police were called, and the family was escorted off the plane, British Airways said.
"If BA had told me that the nanny could not sit with us in business, then we would not have traveled and could have got a later flight. But they only told us that when we got to the boarding gate," Banner told MailOnline.
"I behaved perfectly, but I was challenging the cabin crew because it was the right thing to do," he continued. "The pettiness and vindictiveness of the staff caused this. I was being very polite about the whole thing."
Banner and his family booked a hotel near the airport and traveled from London Gatwick Airport the next day with easyJet, MailOnline reported.
The barrister didn't respond to a request for comment from Insider.
In a statement sent to Insider about the incident, a British Airways representative said: "We do not tolerate disruptive behavior, and the safety of our customers and crew is our top priority."