LA musician flies Frontier because of a checked bag policy, but the day he books a ticket for his DJ, he finds himself blacklisted: ‘Am I tripping?’

Los Angeles-based opera singer and hip hop fusion artist Babatunde Akinboboye just came across a travel situation that really confused him. Especially after he was left blacklisted from Frontier Airlines for something he thought was completely normal. The musician took to Instagram and TikTok to share his frustration after he attempted to book a flight for his DJ while in Philadelphia, only to find himself and his colleague flagged for alleged fraud.

Akinboboye explained the ordeal in the video, saying, “So I’m flying Frontier Airlines. I know, but I travel with two checked bags, and they have a bundle on weight.” He then laid out the issue: “I was already in the city, but I needed my DJ in the city, too. So I bought him a plane ticket, and he showed up to board the flight. Apparently, because his name didn’t match the name for the credit card that was used to purchase the flight, apparently that’s fraud. 

“And so we were both flagged as fraud,” he stated. “My account was flagged as committing fraud. And so the only way that I could buy a plane ticket for myself from Frontier Airlines, again, is to come into the actual airport to buy the ticket. So I come to the airport and wait in line, and they essentially let me know that I’m blacklisted from Frontier Airlines. I cannot buy a plane ticket with any card for myself.”

If you thought it couldn’t get more confusing, it does

The people at the Airline desk explain to him that there is only one way he can fly Frontier Airlines again. In a completely confused tone, Akinboboye says, “The only way I can travel with Frontier Airlines is if I’m flying with someone else and they bought our tickets. Is that weird? Am I tripping? There’s a lot like, I thought you could buy plane tickets for other people. Am I tripping?”

The reaction online was supportive, with many users expressing disbelief at the airline’s policy and the situation as a whole. On TikTok, user LiminalConvergence commented, “so… to fly with them you have to do exactly what got you banned from flying with them in the first place? did i understand that right?” Another user, Jamie Barton, added, “That is insane. I buy plane tickets for friends and family all the time… what the heck is Frontier Airlines up to??” 

NolaBabi Photography also chimed in, noting, “The lies they make up on the spot!! Spouses buy each other tickets, companies buy their employees tickets all the time, travel agents but their clients tickets. This is ridiculous! I hope you contacted Frontier Airlines about this.”

The confusion was mirrored on Instagram, where users were equally baffled. User Boishaww wrote, “That’s WILD! You’re NOT trippin’, THEY are!🤔” and Avi_kaplan simply called the situation “Preposterous.” The conversation took a more serious turn when user Oglesbytenor suggested, “This feels like a case of ‘has an African name’.” Akinboboye responded to this by noting that his DJ’s name is Ugochukwu. 

User D_mnshaybae25 echoed the frustration of many by tagging Frontier and asking, “Was this because he (they) have African names?? Please explain?!! We ALL need an explanation because I book and pay for plane tickets for myself, my husband, my kids and parents traveling without me, how was this a special case? ANSWERS PLEASE!”

As noted by Order Express in their guidance on booking flights, it is generally perfectly acceptable to purchase a ticket for someone else. The key, according to their guidelines, is to ensure the traveler’s full legal name matches their government-issued ID exactly, and to keep travel preferences and documentation in order. Both Frontier’s website and an interaction on Facebook also suggested that booking for someone else isn’t against policy

Frontier has reached out in the comments of the Instagram post, stating, “Hi, we want to learn more about this situation. Please send us a DM.” Despite this, there has been no resolution reported as of now. With over 16k views on TikTok and more than 100k views on Instagram, the post has clearly resonated with or sufficiently confused the community to get them involved.

What is interesting is that often, people get bumped from their seats, like a recent pair of honeymooners who went to board their American Airlines only to find the husband had been bumped. Or they might end up on a no-fly list because of bad behavior, like the elderly passenger who slapped a flight attendant who bumped into her. This might be the first time many of us have seen blacklisting for trying to pay an airline for a service.