Woman claims stress from JetBlue incident caused cancer relapse

A California woman claims her cancer returned due to stress caused by an incident with a JetBlue flight attendant over her emotional support animal. In a lawsuit, 51-year-old Oksana Kiritchenko alleges her health declined after she and her husband were humiliated by a JetBlue crewmember who refused to allow their 23-pound French bulldog, Pier, to sit with them in first class.

According to the complaint obtained by The Independent, the disagreement led to the plane returning to the terminal, where the Kiritchenkos were removed. The lawsuit claims their right to be accompanied by a emotional support animal, as protected by federal law, was violated. JetBlue had permitted Pier on a flight just 11 days earlier without incident.

The lawsuit says that on September 2, the Kiritchenkos and Pier flew to Florida in first class without any problems. They had paid $4,295.60 for round-trip first-class tickets and sent in the necessary paperwork for their service animal.

The lawsuit says that a JetBlue gate agent asked them if they could bring their dog on board while they were getting ready for their return trip. The couple had to wait a long time without any accommodations for Peter Kiritchenko's disability, which makes it hard for him to stand.

The complaint says that the airline finally let them on, but only if one of them went with the dog in economy class. Oksana Kiritchenko agreed to sit in the lower class while her husband stayed in the upper class.

When a flight attendant demanded that the dog be put in a smaller bag that wasn't big enough for it, things got worse. Because of this, the plane went back to the gate, and the Kiritchenkos were taken off the trip.

The couple says that they had to buy new Delta Air Lines tickets for the next day, which cost them more money for travel and lodging. Delta "had no problems with either the plaintiffs' dog or the dog's bag," the claim says.

Kiritchenkos say happened caused them "unnecessary monetary damages" and "an unexplainable level of cruel humiliation and ridicule." Peter Kiritchenko allegedly had long-lasting pain and limited mobility after standing for a long time.

In particular, the lawsuit says that Oksana Kiritchenko got sick again because of the stress of the situation, even though she had Stage 4 cancer before the event. The lawsuit says that when the person got back home, tests at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center showed that the average amount of tumor molecules had gone up from 0.00 to 0.59.

The couple's lawsuit says JetBlue broke their "federally protected right to be accompanied on the flight with their emotional support animal. "Some airlines, like JetBlue, have changed their rules in the last few years so that only emotional support animals that have been taught can fly. It is no longer true that "emotional support animals" are service animals.

Kiritchenkos' lawyer, Aleksandr Volkov, confirmed the case's facts in an email but wouldn't say anything else about the ongoing lawsuit. It has been asked of JetBlue to speak on the lawsuit, but they have not done so yet.

The case shows that planes and people are still not getting along when it comes to rules about emotional support animals for the disabled. Airlines have had to deal with some strange requests from passengers in the past few years. Some wanted to bring peacocks, mice, and even hamsters on board to make them feel better.

The outcome of this case could change how planes treat emotional support animals and emotional support animals in the future. Additionally, it makes us think about what airlines should do to help people with disabilities and health problems.

As the case moves through the courts, it will likely bring attention to the larger debate about bringing emotional support animals on planes and how to balance passengers' needs with airline rules. According to the court, the ruling could affect how airlines handle emotional support animals and making accommodations for passengers in the future.