There was drama aboard a Southwest Airlines flight from Baltimore to Los Angeles on Tuesday when a female passenger had to be forcibly dragged out of the plane, by two police officers.

46-year old Anila Daulatzai who hails from Baltimore had notified airline staff while boarding, that she had a life-threatening allergy to pets. This was after she noticed two dogs on board the flight and requested that the animals be removed from the plane. One of the dogs was a pet, while the other was an emotional support animal, LA Times reported.

Supporting documents

The airline staff then asked her to provide the necessary medical documents to show that she had a life-threatening pet allergy as she claimed, which she was unable to provide.

The airline staff then requested Anila several times to exit the plane fearing that if indeed she had the allergy she claimed, she could possibly suffer from an attack during the flight, and force the plane to divert.

Anila declined the staff requests saying she had to be on that particular flight as her father was having surgery, and she needed to be in LA. It is at this point that the airline staff called law enforcement officers to eject her. Anila resisted the move and had to be forcibly dragged out of the plane.

Video

Another passenger on the flight who took a video of the incident, Bill Dumas, told CBS News that Anila's behavior was 'odd' and the officers were just doing 'what had to be done'.

The shaky cellphone video shows two officers, attempting to drag Anila off the plane while she protests and resists. Shouts of 'don't touch me' and claims from Anila that the officers had 'ripped her pants' could be heard in the video, while one officer directs her to 'walk'.

Airline apology

In a statement, Southwest Airlines later apologized to the passenger saying that it was 'disheartened' by the turn of events during the incident, which saw the passenger's removal from the plane by police officers.

The airline further added that it would contact Anila and address her concerns, as the airline had been built on pleasant customer service.

Criminal charges

According to Lt. Kevin Ayd of Maryland Transportation Authority Police, after she was removed from the flight, Anila was taken into custody and charged with disorderly conduct, failure to obey a reasonable and lawful order, obstructing and hindering a police officer, resisting arrest and disturbing the peace.

She was transported to Anne Arundel County District Court commissioner, where she was released on her own recognizance, Ayd told LA Times. Lt. Ayd also clarified that Anila was removed from the plane at the request of its Captain.