TORONTO — Academy Award-winning actor Russell Crowe did not take kindly when told by airport security that his children’s hoverboards would not be allowed in the plane’s hold on a Virgin Australia flight.
He took to Twitter as an outlet for his anger.
Ridiculous @VirginAustralia. No Segway boards as luggage? Too late to tell us at airport.Kids and I offloaded. Goodbye Virgin. Never again.
— Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) December 29, 2015
Hoverboards, a popular holiday gift, have been beset with controversy after reports emerged of the boards bursting into flames. While the cause of the fires remains unknown, consumer safety probes suggest the problem may lie with the lithium batteries or faulty plugs. Virgin Australia quickly responded to the upset actor via Twitter, highlighting that many airlines have banned the boards.
@russellcrowe Hi Russell, due to safety concerns over the lithium ion batteries in hoverboards, these have been banned on all major… 1/3
— Virgin Australia (@VirginAustralia) December 29, 2015
@russellcrowe …Australian airlines and many around the world. We’re sorry you were not aware of this prior to check-in today. We… 2/3
— Virgin Australia (@VirginAustralia) December 29, 2015
@russellcrowe …hope to see you on board again soon. 3/3
— Virgin Australia (@VirginAustralia) December 29, 2015
Russell, apparently having missed the memo, tweeted:
.@VirginAustralia I’m awaiting your reply, where is your duty of responsibility in this? Why not tell me when I am booking my ticket?
— Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) December 29, 2015
The airline promptly tweeted back saying the information is available upon ticket confirmation and pre-flight correspondence.
@russellcrowe Hi Russell, this information is outlined in the Dangerous Goods section in the booking confirmation and check in… 1/4
— Virgin Australia (@VirginAustralia) December 29, 2015
@russellcrowe …reminder emails you will have received. We have also communicated this on Facebook and Twitter, as well as… 2/4
— Virgin Australia (@VirginAustralia) December 29, 2015
Crowe has vowed to “never again” fly with Virgin Australia and ended the exchange by retweeting a parent’s reply thanking him for the warning, CNN reports.
Many airlines, including British Airways, Qantas, Emirates and Qatar, are rapidly banning hoverboards.
