A 68-year-old woman has sued Southwest Airlines Co., claiming that the airline ejected her from a flight for removing her mask to drink water. The lawsuit concerns an incident which occurred in January 2021 on a Southwest flight due to depart from Reagan National Airport in Virginia to Palm Beach International Airport in Florida. Plaintiff Medora Claiborne Reading claims that her civil rights as a medically disabled person were infringed by the airline, which removed her from the flight prior to takeoff. The complaint describes how the plaintiff informed the Southwest employee from whom she purchased the ticket that she was in need of special accommodation due to a heart condition, hypoglycemia, claustrophobia, and a tendency for fainting; all of which can impede her breathing. Reading was told that the airline could accommodate her disability. When Reading approached a Southwest employee at the gate of her flight to explain her …