Salt-N-Pepa's Sandra Denton details incident in which she was kicked off Southwest Airlines flight over conflict over seat she paid for: 'They have three police officers waiting for me and I was like, what?'
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Salt-N-Pepa member Sandra 'Pepa' Denton explained in detail an incident which took place earlier this week, in which she was kicked off a Southwest Airlines flight, saying it left her surprised and confused.
The 59-year-old rapper chat with TMZ in detail about the course of events that occurred Monday as she attempted to travel from Las Vegas, Nevada to Nashville, Tennessee.
The Kingston, Jamaica-born musical artist, who previously documented video of the aftermath of the incident on her Instagram account, explained to the outlet that while she'd paid for an extra seat to accommodate a knee injury she is living with, airline staffers sought to get her to relinquish the seat.
'I got on the plane, and then I had my brace with me but I didn’t have it on at that particular moment,' she said. 'I took it out of my bag to put it on, I was stretching my legs and then a flight attendant came and he was trying to give my seat away.'
Denton said that she tried to explain to the flight attendant that she had specifically bought the extra seat to alleviate potential pain she might suffer as result of her injury.
Salt-N-Pepa member Sandra 'Pepa' Denton, 59, explained in detail an incident which took place earlier this week in which she was kicked off a Southwest Airlines flight, saying it left her surprised and confused
The rapper chat with TMZ in detail about the course of events that occurred Monday as she attempted to travel from Las Vegas, Nevada to Nashville, Tennessee. Pictured in 2021 in NYC
'I was like, "Oh no this seat is taken, I have this seat as well," and he was like, "No you don’t, we’re gonna give this seat away" and I’m like, "No you’re not, cause I’ve always done this,"' Denton said. 'I’ve always purchased two seats, if I need it, for my leg to have extra leg room because of my injury to my knee.'
Denton said the flight attendant subsequently apologized to her and said she can have the seat, at which point she thanked him.
Denton said she thought the issue had been put to bed until she was approached by another traveler on the crowded plane, seeking to take the extra seat she purchased to rest her leg.
'The next thing I know, a man comes - mind you, this plane is completely booked, it's 143 seats, the only seat that was vacant was a seat next to me - and this man comes on the plane,' Denton said.
Denton said the airline allowed the traveler to approach her on the plane and put her in an uncomfortable position, as the man said that he had needed the seat to attend a funeral and asked for the extra seat.
'And I was like "Oh my God, this is not happening to me, cause I actually really need this seat,"' Denton said. 'And I got up and I said to the gentleman, "Are you going to a funeral, I need you to swear to me and tell me the truth, are you going to a funeral, look me in the eyes."'
Denton said the man 'couldn't do it,' as 'his lip was quivering like he wanted to say something but he wouldn't say, "I’m telling the truth."
'So I said, "Well I’m not giving you my seat then and be uncomfortable, if you’re lying."'
Denton documented an incident in which she was removed from a Southwest Airlines flight heading from Las Vegas, Nevada, to Nashville, Tennessee, on Monday
Instagram video showed a confrontation after the fact with Southwest employees. She claims she was accosted for having a second seat, despite having purchased it
Denton said following that exchange, a flight attendant told her, 'Get your things, you’re getting off,' which shocked her.
Asked if there was an argument, Denton said she didn't understand how the situation escalated to the point in which she was being kicked off the flight.
'That's what I'm saying - I even was giving him the seat and everything,' Denton said. 'And why is he even on the plane when the plane is totally booked at this point? Except for my seat.'
Denton said she was subsequently caught off-guard when law enforcement had been waiting for her after she was ejected from the plane.
'When I got off the plane sadly, they have three police officers waiting for me and I was like, what?' she said. 'And I turned around and I said, "This is for me?" They escorted me out of the airport.'
Another passenger on the flight, named Shannon McCormack, told the outlet that at no point did she see Denton arguing with anyone until she was kicked off the flight.
McCormack said that a flight attendant was rankled after Denton expressed her intent to record what was happening, at which point a separate flight attendant told her, 'You, Denton, off!'
Southwest told TMZ that Denton was refunded $2500 she'd paid for the flight, and that the reason police were involved was because at that point she didn't have a valid ticket, and it's protocol for police to escort people who don't have valid tickets from the terminal.
She claimed a male passenger asked for her seat because he was going to a 'funeral,' but he refused to prove it to her. An employee (pictured) claimed to Denton that she was removed for filming the crew
Denton claims that after the man asked for her seat, the crew tried to move her to an exit row, but since she was injured and disabled she wouldn't have been able to assist in the event of an emergency
Denton was kicked off the flight after not listening to instructions given to her by a crew member, Southwest told the outlet, without specifying what she ignored.
Denton said she was calm while she was getting off the plane, which McCormack said was accurate.
Denton on Monday posted a video to Instagram apparently showing the aftermath of the confrontation, after she had already left the jet.
In the video, which featured her speaking to employees, she claimed that the issue began after one of the employees questioned her about having two seats.
Denton also claimed that another man asked for her seat — and he was apparently given it after she was escorted off the jet.
In a statement to DailyMail.com, Southwest said: 'Our Flight Crews are responsible for the Safety and Comfort of all Passengers in the cabin. With that in mind, they denied boarding to the Customer and her ticket was refunded.'
An attorney for Denton declined to comment.
The musician was taking the flight to a meeting in Nashville, and she often chooses the same flight, as she said it is the only direct flight to the music-focused city from Vegas, according to TMZ.
(L-R) Salt-N-Pepa's DJ Spinderella, Sandra Denton and Cheryl Wray were honored with star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in November of 2022
She said she opted to purchase two seats due to a leg injury related to a 2018 car crash, and she also had a greeter take her in a wheelchair up to the plane door.
Southwest famously allows passengers to choose their own seats once they get on the plane, rather than forcing customers to choose seats beforehand and charging extra for less uncomfortable seats, as most other airlines do.
Denton claims that she was approached by a man, who was seen speaking to her in her video, about why she had two seats.
He claimed in the video that he asked her because he didn't see a cast or brace, though she had a brace with her and allegedly put it on after the conversation.
It's unclear if it was made known to the employee that Denton had purchased tickets for two seats, or if he may have been under the impression that she was using a second seat without having paid for it due to an alleged medical condition.
However, he notes in the video that Southwest has a policy allowing large customers to get a second seat in some instances, though he told Denton that she wasn't 'encroaching' on the seat next to her, so he assumed that was not the reason that she had a seat.
The video doesn't clarify why exactly Denton was kicked off the flight after that first encounter. She says in the clip that a man asked for her seat, and then the employee who first questioned her indicates that she was removed for filming on the flight.
Salt-N-Pepa performed at the 65th annual Grammy Awards February 2023 in LA
Southwest did not answer a question about its policy on passengers filming their interactions with flight crews.
Denton shot back that she had never filmed while on the plane, and she claimed she was merely on a call to her assistant, and it wasn't until she was out of the jet that she began filming.
It didn't appear that the employees were going to be reversing the decision, though, and he and another woman that Denton said was involved in the kerfuffle tried to get her to leave the walkway to the jet, as it was about to leave and the walkway would be moving.
Toward the end of the clip, she forcefully shouts at the employee after turning her camera toward the exit, though it's unclear if he touched her as she began slowly walking away.
During the altercation, Denton had her two tickets held out in front of the camera to prove she had paid for both seats, though Southwest has now refunded them.
The airline did not respond to questions about whether it had contacted Denton in response to the incident, but she indicated to TMZ that she is considering possible legal actions against the airline.
In her video, she mentioned a male passenger who asked her to give up her second seat.
Denton said she tried explaining to the man that she had the seat due to an injury, and she said other passengers began arguing about whether or not she should have to give up the seat after she paid extra for it.
The musical trio, which boasts hits such as Push It, Whatta Man and Let's Talk About Sex, pictured in 1987
She notes that her assistant urged her to record the entire ordeal, though she claims she did not do so.
But after that, she was told she had to leave the flight by staff, though she claims no reason was given for the ejection.
According to Denton, that man who claimed he needed her second paid-for seat ended up getting it after she was kicked off the flight.
It's unclear what role the man played in her ejection, but the Salt-N-Pepa member also alleged that flight attendants tried to move her into an exit row, which she would not have been able to sit in, as her injury would have prevented her from assisting with evacuation if there was an emergency.
She clarified that she was able to reschedule the meeting she was traveling to in Nashville, but she paid for the greeter to ferry her to the plane, and she also lost the $500 she paid for car service at her destination.
However, Denton said Southwest refunded the $2500 she paid for her tickets.
