A passenger took his seat in the Wizz Air emergency row and agreed to help, only for the crew to allegedly move him for being autistic

London-based creator Luke Grosch (lukegrosch) just took to Instagram and TikTok to claim that he was never going to fly with Wizz Air again and accused them of discrimination. According to his video, Grosch said he was happy to help in an emergency when he took his emergency row seat. However, when he was asked to remove his headphones, he disclosed that he needed them as he was autistic, because he assumed the crew member meant they needed to stay off.

In his video, he said that he was told he could wear them, but they needed to be off at the beginning and end of the flight. He agreed and kept the headphones off until he was told he could wear them. Then, according to his story, about 10 minutes later, another crew member informed him he had to move.

Grosch said that he was told, “You can’t sit here because we can’t trust that you’re able to support in an emergency situation.” When he asked for clarification, she pointed to his disclosure that he was autistic. Grosch was very frustrated, noting that the crew would have never known he was autistic if he hadn’t mentioned it. He said, “I’ve never felt so dehumanized in my life,” and believed the situation could have been dealt with better.

Grosch did not blame the crew

In the post, Grosch emphasized that he does not believe the staff acted out of malice, but he feels the airline’s policy or the training provided to employees is flawed and discriminatory. He argued that the airline needs a better understanding of the people they serve if they are going to implement policies regarding disability and safety.

In the comments, Wizz Air responded, suggesting the incident may have been a “misunderstanding around your use of headphones,” and that crew members can adjust seating decisions for safety. Grosch pushed back, stating that the misunderstanding had been cleared and he was specifically told he was being moved for being autistic.

Exit row rules in the U.K. and Europe are set by aviation regulators, not just airlines. The UK Civil Aviation Authority says passengers may be kept out of exit rows if a physical or mental impairment or disability means they would have difficulty moving quickly when asked. Europe’s aviation regulator, EASA, lists passengers with reduced mobility or intellectual disability among those who should not sit by exits, and says cabin crew can move anyone they find unsuitable to assist.

Crews also check that exit row passengers are willing and able to help before takeoff, and some have moved passengers who failed to give clear verbal consent. Neither regulator names autism specifically, so these rules leave the call to crew judgment of whether a condition would actually affect someone’s ability to help in an evacuation.

Overall, the commenters were largely on Grosch’s side. One autistic user who identified as a former Virgin Atlantic crew called the behavior “disgusting.” Another pointed out the irony of the situation, noting that many neurodivergent individuals work as doctors and paramedics, and called the decision “abelist.” A third pointed out that “Autistic people love instructions and order, we are amazing people to help in an emergency!”

Attack of the Fanboy was unable to independently verify the account beyond Grosch’s Instagram and TikTok posts and Wizz Air’s public comment reply.