Imams' Bias Suit Against Airline May Hinge on Pilot
Imams' Bias Suit Against Airline May Hinge on Pilot's Reasoning
May 30, 2007
URL: http://www.nysun.com/article/55478
The outcome of a discrimination lawsuit filed by six imams who were removed from an America West Airlines flight could depend entirely on what was going through the mind of the plane's pilot, Captain John Wood, when he decided not to fly with the men on board.
Captain Wood, the pilot of Flight 300 to Phoenix from Minneapolis on November 20, 2006, had good reason to be suspicious of the six imams traveling as his passengers, lawyers for US Airways Group, which operates America West Airlines, said yesterday in court papers that provide a detailed account of the decision to remove the imams.
The papers respond to a lawsuit filed by the imams alleging discrimination by US Airways and passengers who requested that the imams be removed. The lawsuit, filed in March in federal court in Minnesota, has prompted calls in Congress and Albany for legislation that would protect from legal retaliation passengers who report what they regard as suspicious behavior.
The court papers filed yesterday describe only one passenger — a 33-year-old man traveling on a California driver's license — as expressing concern about the imams to the flight crew. The man forwarded a note to a flight attendant that described concerns he had about "6 Suspicious Arabic men on plane," according to a copy of the note. But the legal papers do not say explicitly that no other passengers spoke or wrote to the flight crew.
The legal papers say Captain Wood decided to remove the imams from the flight on the basis of three pieces of information: the note, flight records suggesting that three of the imams had one-way tickets, and the erratic behavior that some of the imams displayed in the cabin.
In asking for the suit to be dismissed, lawyers for the airline say Captain Wood made "the only reasonable and rational decision to be made" given "what he knew at the time," according to the brief.
"In such situations, due to the enhanced security requirements imposed in the aftermath of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, airline personnel must closely examine any irregular or unusual behavior," the brief said. "A failure to do so could have catastrophic ramifications."
An affidavit by Captain Wood affirming the company's version of events was not included in the court filings yesterday.
At least one piece of information available to Captain Wood was wrong: The three imams whom he believed to be traveling on one-way tickets had all flown to Minneapolis three days earlier with US Airways, the brief said. But because of changes to their original flight, the electronic itineraries available made it appear that they traveling on one-way tickets.
Captain Wood received the note from the 33-year old passenger via a flight attendant, Terri Boatner. The note read in full: "6 Suspicious Arabic men on plane, spaced out in their seats. All were together, saying … ‘Allah … Allah,' cursing US involvement w/Saddam before flight- 1 in front exit row, another in first row 1st class, another in 8D, another in 22D, two in 25 E&F."
Another flight attendant, Kevin Kelly, told Captain Wood that two of the imams had asked for seatbelt extenders, though in Mr. Kelly's opinion only one appeared large enough to require it, according to the papers. The flight attendant also said one of the imams had walked through the cabin on two occasions to talk with the other imams, according to the papers.
After speaking with the two flight attendants, Captain Wood called a US Airways ground security coordinator, who came on board. The imams were removed by law enforcement personnel and cleared to fly within the next day.
A lawyer for the plaintiffs, Omar Mohammedi, did not return a call for comment.
A spokeswoman for US Airways, Andrea Rader, declined to provide further information on Captain Wood.
