California woman with cancer asked to leave airline flight

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – A California woman with cancer says she got kicked off a flight home from Hawaii after being told she couldn’t fly without a doctor’s note.

Elizabeth Sedway, who has a type of blood cancer, tells San Jose TV station KNTV (http://bit.ly/1yVR4uR ) that she and her family were asked to leave the Alaska Airlines flight to San Jose on Monday.

Sedway says she had told a flight attendant that she might need extra time to board because she sometimes feels weak. She wore a surgical mask in the boarding area.

An airline doctor questioned Sedway on the plane and then asked the group to leave.

Alaska Airlines spokeswoman Bobbie Egan says the “communication breakdown was on our part.” The company says it will refund the family’s airfare and reimburse any expenses.