A lawsuit filed in Manhattan Supreme Court alleges that United Airlines diverted a transatlantic flight mid-air not because of a safety issue — but because the plane was filled with visibly Jewish passengers.
The April 22, 2023, flight from Newark to Tel Aviv was abruptly turned back to New Jersey “after hours of flight for no valid reason,” according to the suit, which names nearly 60 Jewish passengers as plaintiffs. The passengers, many of whom were traveling to Israel for Yom Hazikaron and Yom Ha’atzmaut, claim that anti-Jewish bias played a key role in the crew’s decision.
According to the complaint, the incident began when one Jewish passenger briefly sat in a flight attendant’s jump seat while waiting to use the restroom. Instead of resolving the matter calmly, the “ill-trained and/or unvetted” United crew reportedly escalated the situation, choosing to turn the plane around and blaming the broader group of Jewish passengers for the disruption.
“If one person is acting bad, it doesn’t mean everyone around them is responsible,” said attorney Yoram Nachimovsky, who is representing the plaintiffs. “This wasn’t about safety. This was about prejudice.”
The suit claims that United staff made openly discriminatory remarks, including one instance where a passenger seeking assistance was allegedly told by a flight attendant to “go ask your own kind.” Upon returning to Newark, the Jewish passengers say they were offered no help or rebooking assistance, leaving many stranded and unable to make it to Israel for the national commemorations.
“These skies were anything but friendly toward Jews,” the suit asserts.
United Airlines has denied the allegations, calling the claims “meritless” in a statement.
“One passenger who was a safety and security risk caused the flight to return to Newark,” United said. “Our crew put safety first and exhibited professionalism in managing this matter, and we will vigorously defend against these false allegations.”
But the plaintiffs say the airline’s response only underscores the need for sensitivity training and accountability, not just damage control.
“This wasn’t an isolated mistake,” Nachimovsky added. “It was a chilling example of collective punishment based on religion and appearance — and it can’t be allowed to stand.”
(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)
Join the official YWN WhatsApp status
6 Responses
When one person makes a claim with no back support I kind of go ho hum. But when there are 60 flyers all says same thing they have a real problem that needs to be addressed
The anti Jewish precedence was started by United’s decision to stop flying to Isreal
Using the Hamas attack on Isreal as the excuse
I wonder what the person sitting in the flight attendant’s seat responded when asked to move… I’ve flown that flight numerous times and have always found the crew to be highly professional and considerate.
Hence since years ago already:- I always fly El Al, the only trustworthy honorable Airline.
G-d Bless El Al.
G-d Bless Israel.
Not to be ignored is that United, along with its CEO, is the most DEI of all of the major carriers. So of course they would be the most un-inclusive bunch.
United has had this antisemitic attitude for years. In the past 10 years, the only time I flew with them was when I was given a free ticket to Israel. They are fit to be tied. Not nice people from the top down. Their staff at Newark airport is so incredibly distasteful.
Why do these cries of “Antisemitism” always seem to start with, “After the Jewish person did what was a very brief & very minor act, so little you could barely call it an incident, the untrained person wouldn’t even notice it, on a scale from 1-10 this wasn’t even a 1, I’ve seen people act worse in the White House with no complaints.”
Let’s be honest. Some of our reputation for acting not the most Menschlich when interacting with Aino-Yehudim especially when traveling is well deserved.