AirTran Apologizes to Muslim Passengers

Jan. 2, 2008— -- The airline AirTran is apologizing to nine Muslim passengers ordered off a flight Thursday by federal air marshals at the request of the pilot because of their overheard conversation about the safest place to sit on the plane.

"We generally like to sit in the middle of the plane because I've been told it's the safest place to sit," said Atif Irfan, an attorney who was detained onboard AirTran Flight 175 from Washington, D.C., to Orlando, Fla., on New Year's Day.

"Then, my sister-in-law had mentioned maybe that it's the back of the plane," he added. "So we were discussing basically where the safest place in to sit in an airplane is."

But that's not the conversation another passenger sitting behind Irfan and his family reported hearing. A worried teenage girl on board contacted a flight attendant, saying that she heard talk of the plane blowing up or going down.

The pilot contacted Transportation Security Administration, had the family removed, and then ordered all passengers off the aircraft for re-screening.

The incident has sparked a debate over whether officials were exercising appropriate caution or unfairly profiling passengers.

"I mean, we're not going to stand there on the airplane and say, oh, you know, 'bomb this,' 'terrorist that,' 'threat this.' I mean we're smarter than that," Irfan said. "So I think that, to a certain extent, people listen to whatever words we have [and] unfortunately hear what they want to hear a lot of times."

Irfan said fellow passengers jumped to conclusions because of the color of his skin and his wife's traditional Muslim headscarf -- a case of discrimination.

"We did feel like we were being singled out, not because of what we had said or some members had said," said Kashir Irfan, a detained flyer, "but rather the fact we looked a certain way and we wore certain pieces of clothing."

"We had to stand there like we were criminals," said Inayet Shahin, another detained flyer. "We had three little kids, and I just feel like seeing that scene you could tell that there was a lot of discrimination going on."

Security Procedure or Unfair Profiling?

The airline said that the steps taken to remove the family were necessary for security.

"Particularly in today's environment, especially after 9/11, I think they're going to err on the side of beyond where they probably should," said Brad Garrett, a former FBI agent.

The FBI got involved and quickly determined the incident was just a "misunderstanding."

When the families tried to rebook a flight to Orlando on Thursday, AirTran initially refused, saying it had not been notified by the FBI that the passengers were cleared to fly. But with the help of an FBI agent, the families were able to get on another flight to Orlando on another airline -- for twice the price.

AirTran Airways apologized Friday to the families -- all U.S.-born American citizens -- and offered a refund of any additional costs for the families' tickets, as well as a free flight home to Washington.

"We apologize to all of the passengers -- to the nine who had to undergo extensive interviews from the authorities and to the 95 who ultimately made the flight," the statement said. "Nobody on Flight 175 reached their destination on time on New Year's Day, and we regret it."

In a statement, the TSA backed the airline's decision, calling security a "shared responsibility" for pilot, crew and passengers.

"We support the pilot in command in making decisions he or she believes is in the best interest of those onboard the aircraft," said the statement on the TSA Web site. "TSA counts a vigilant traveling public as an important layer of security and continues to encourage passengers to be alert and report suspicious activity."

While everyone involved now agrees this was just a misunderstanding, the incident points out the level of fear among the flying public -- a fear of Muslims in traditional appearance.

It raises new questions about airport security and whether this was proper procedure or unfair profiling against Muslims. It also stems from the fact that no one in the security business wants to take any chances.

"Once somebody makes an allegation," Garrett said of security stipulations, "[officials] have to go through x number of steps -- 10 steps, 15 steps -- even though maybe in their own mind, probably the air marshals in this case probably thought ... 'This isn't much of anything'. ... But because it was brought to light, then these rules kick in."

The two brothers whose families were removed, one a doctor, the other a lawyer, were headed to Orlando for a religious conference. They are now in Orlando, enjoying the sun, after a day of discrimination.

It's "sad to me as an American to be honest," Atif Irfan said, "in the country that I grew up in, in a country that I feel like I have to fight for also."