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 ******* 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 *****. 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 ******* 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.
