Alaska Airlines Bans State Legislator Over Mask Dispute
Alaska Airlines said it banned state Sen. Lora Reinbold (R-AK) for failing to adhere to the company’s mask policies.
“We have notified Senator Lora Reinbold that she is not permitted to fly with us for her continued refusal to comply with employee instruction regarding the current mask policy,” a spokesman told the Anchorage Daily News on Saturday. “This suspension is effective immediately, pending further review. Federal law requires all guests to wear a mask over their nose and mouth at all times during travel, including throughout the flight, during boarding and deplaning, and while traveling through an airport.”
Reinbold responded to the ban in a Facebook post.
“Until there is a fair determination, after thorough review of both sides, I believe this should be confidential,” Reinbold wrote. “I learned about [the] decision before I knew there was even an inquiry and before I had a chance to talk to or discuss this with anyone at Alaska Air. I never received a warning via a yellow card per their policy either.”
Reinbold also accused the airline of sharing her name with the media without her consent just before the story about her situation appeared in the Anchorage Daily News, writing, “There was no due process before a temporary decision that is ‘under review’ was made public. Alaska Airlines sent information, including my name, to the media without my knowledge nor permission. I do believe constitutional rights are at risk under corporate covid policies.”
A purported video of the incident posted on Twitter appeared to show Reinbold engaged in the April 22 dispute with an airline employee as airport security looked on.
Whoa! A source just sent this video of Sen. Reinbold at the Juneau airport. She was refusing to wear the mask and the police got involved! She’s also filming @AlaskaAir employees and asking for their names. Hyper loose. A second video is below. #akleg pic.twitter.com/EfaoSU3K9k
— The Alaska Landmine (@alaskalandmine) April 22, 2021
It isn’t the first time 57-year-old Reinbold has sparred with Alaska Airlines. She also made news in November for disagreeing with flight attendants over her use of a mask.
“I got met at the gate, with a supervisor person, who came with three or four people and inspected the mask that was over my face and my mouth,” she said in a radio interview at the time. “It was a double-material mask. She said, ‘It does not cover your chin,’ and she asked me to put another mask on. … They let me board, I sit in my seat, they brought me another mask and asked me to put this mask on. That’s where the rub was, because I was being asked to wear two masks.”
She later sent a cake to flight attendants involved in the incident, with the message, “I’m sorry if I offended you.”
Alaska I went to new heights to serve you & have a new appreciation for the marine ferry system. I am keenly aware of…
Posted by Lora Reinbold on Sunday, April 25, 2021
Alaska Airlines, the fifth-largest airline in the United States, said it had banned 506 people for violating its mask policies as of Friday.
The company is the only one with direct flights between Anchorage and Juneau, the state’s capital. Reinbold said she traveled by ground and ferry instead, with photos of the trip posted on social media. “I am keenly aware of the monopoly in air transport to Juneau that needs reviewed!” Reinbold wrote.
