Laura Merry did everything she was supposed to do. This 25-year-old English teacher, who has a severe nut allergy, notified the Australian airline Qantas months before flying and says she had written confirmation that no nuts would be served on board.
On 3 March 2019, already on the plane, according to her account, the head flight attendant told her that there was no note about her allergy and that it was too late to make requests. The 160 passengers were going to be served complimentary slivered almonds. She asked them to skip the snack, since the flight lasted only one hour, but says the crew refused, claiming it was airline policy, and also refused to make an announcement to the passengers. Her solution, according to Merry, was to hand her a face mask.
She maintains that the face mask did not protect her from an allergic reaction, so she spent the flight hiding in the bathroom, away from those eating. She did not suffer a reaction, but the risk was real: anaphylaxis thousands of feet in the air. Qantas says on its website that it cannot guarantee an allergen-free environment and continues to serve almonds, cashews, and macadamia nuts. Was it Merry’s responsibility to manage the risk, or the airline’s, after it had confirmed it could accommodate her allergy?