Whitney Lynn, a Florida evangelist with a large social media following, was ordered off an Alaska Airlines flight bound for San Diego after she preached to passengers before the plane left Orlando International Airport.
The incident occurred before takeoff on Alaska Airlines Flight 708, which was bound for San Diego from Orlando International Airport (MCO) in Florida on Thursday, July 30.
Lynn, 40, of Orlando, addressed the cabin for less than a minute.
Lynn got up during a flight delay and delivered a message in just under a minute, telling fellow Alaska Airlines passengers that even if it was frustrating to wait, God’s timing was perfect “and maybe he’s sparing us from danger today.”
In her message, Lynn said: “So I want you to rest and know that Jesus Christ loves you so much that he died on the cross for your sins. He rose again in 3 days. He’s alive, and he’s the one true god. But the wages of arson is death, hell forever. Apart from Jesus, we won’t make it to heaven. He loves you so much. Make him lord. Repent of your sins. He is coming back very soon. I pray protection over this flight in the name of Jesus.”
She said in an interview that no one asked her to stop.
When Lynn inquired why she was being asked to exit the plane, the man told her that the crew does not “feel safe” with her onboard.
“I didn’t know the message of Jesus Christ was unsafe,” Lynn responded while gathering her things.
“Do I have any guns or anything like that?” she responded. “No, I don’t. So freedom of speech is not safe?”
She continued preaching as she packed, telling passengers that people can no longer talk about Jesus and that their discomfort proves there is power in his name.
“It’s called spiritual warfare. You know why? Because demons don’t like the name of Jesus.”
Lynn posted several videos of the episode on social media. By Friday afternoon, one clip had drawn roughly 3 million views on Instagram.
“Our flight crew became increasingly concerned about a guest’s behavior on board the aircraft, which was also affecting other guests,” Alaska Airlines said in a statement.
“The passenger was asked to deplane the aircraft for safety reasons,” the airline continued, adding that the traveler will not be permitted to travel on Alaska Airlines flights for “the foreseeable future.”
Lynn received notification that she was also barred from flying with Alaska Airlines’ sister carriers, Hawaiian Airlines and Horizon Air, while the incident is under review.
Although she was issued a flight credit, she says it is now unusable because of the travel ban.
Additionally,
she also claims to be banned from Frontier Airlines.
Lynn received an email from corporate security stating that she was banned from flying with Alaska Airlines.
Lynn said this was about “freedom of speech and First Amendment rights being infringed upon because of religious discrimination.”
In a follow-up video, Lynn said: “I guarantee you if I stood up on that plane, and I talked about LGBTQ and pro abortion, and I hate Trump. I would probably get applauded.”
“This is definitely a spiritual war. We know it’s the end times,” she continued.
Lynn was quoted as saying that passengers “have no choice but to hear the truth,” comparing her preaching to offering a life raft to someone who is drowning.
Beneath a video clip of her preaching on another flight in San Diego, she reportedly wrote, “I just love a captive audience.”
Lynn said in a post that she successfully converted an airport shuttle driver who took her back to her hotel that day, and she also prayed with a man she later met at the front desk.
“Looking back, I can clearly see God’s hand in it all. What seemed like a setback became an opportunity for people to hear the gospel and give their lives to Christ,” she wrote in the post’s caption.
Lynn said one of her followers had died and she had intended to travel to California for the funeral.
She was able to rebook her flight but later got an email from the airline saying she was not allowed to travel on Alaska Airlines, Hawaiian Airlines or Horizon Air while reports about her recent travels were under investigation.
The evangelist has indicated that she plans to seek legal advice and has no intention of stopping her practice of preaching to fellow passengers during airline journeys.
In the viral moment from Thursday morning, Lynn stood up from her seat on a delayed Boeing 737 MAX 9 as passengers waited to depart for San Diego. She addressed the full cabin, speaking about God’s perfect timing and Jesus Christ’s salvation. While she spoke, a flight attendant call button chimed in the background.
No one asked her to stop.
Within minutes, ground staff boarded and removed her from the aircraft.
She walked back into the terminal and began another sermon at Gate 36.
“Excuse me, Orlando,” she announced. “I just got kicked off this plane for telling people about Jesus Christ.” She declared that these are the end times, said Christians will be persecuted, warned that “the wages of our sin is death—hell forever,” and vowed that she will not stop preaching.
Lynn said she intends to speak with a lawyer and plans to keep preaching on flights.