Posted on 08/19/2006 4:54:48 PM PDT by West Coast Conservative
British holidaymakers staged an unprecedented mutiny - refusing to allow their flight to take off until two men they feared were terrorists were forcibly removed.
The extraordinary scenes happened after some of the 150 passengers on a Malaga-Manchester flight overheard two men of Asian appearance apparently talking Arabic.
Passengers told cabin crew they feared for their safety and demanded police action. Some stormed off the Monarch Airlines Airbus A320 minutes before it was due to leave the Costa del Sol at 3am. Others waiting for Flight ZB 613 in the departure lounge refused to board it.
The incident fuels the row over airport security following the arrest of more than 20 people allegedly planning the suicide-bombing of transatlantic jets from the UK to America. It comes amid growing demands for passenger-profiling and selective security checks.
It also raised fears that more travellers will take the law into their own hands - effectively conducting their own 'passenger profiles'.
The passenger revolt came as Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary was accused of using the terror crisis to make money. Government sources say he boasted to an official at the Transport Department: "Every time I appear on TV, I get a spike in sales."
The Tories said the Government's failure to reassure travellers had led the Malaga passengers to 'behave irrationally' and 'hand a victory to terrorists'.
Websites used by pilots and cabin crew were yesterday reporting further incidents. In one, two British women with young children on another flight from Spain complained about flying with a bearded Muslim even though he had been security-checked twice before boarding.
The trouble in Malaga flared last Wednesday as two British citizens in their 20s waited in the departure lounge to board the pre-dawn flight and were heard talking what passengers took to be Arabic. Worries spread after a female passenger said she had heard something that alarmed her.
Passengers noticed that, despite the heat, the pair were wearing leather jackets and thick jumpers and were regularly checking their watches.
Initially, six passengers refused to board the flight. On board the aircraft, word reached one family. To the astonishment of cabin crew, they stood up and walked off, followed quickly by others.
The Monarch pilot - a highly experienced captain - accompanied by armed Civil Guard police and airport security staff, approached the two men and took their passports.
Half an hour later, police returned and escorted the two Asian passengers off the jet.
'There was no fuss or panic'
Soon afterwards, the aircraft was cleared while police did a thorough security sweep. Nothing was found and the plane took off - three hours late and without the two men on board.
Monarch arranged for them to spend the rest of the night in an airport hotel and flew them back to Manchester later on Wednesday.
College lecturer Jo Schofield, her husband Heath and daughters Emily, 15, and Isabel, 12, were caught up in the passenger mutiny.
Mrs Schofield, 38, said: "The plane was not yet full and it became apparent that people were refusing to board. In the gate waiting area, people had been talking about these two, who looked really suspicious with their heavy clothing, scruffy, rough, appearance and long hair.
"Some of the older children, who had seen the terror alert on television, were starting to mutter things like, 'Those two look like they're bombers.'
"Then a family stood up and walked off the aircraft. They were joined by others, about eight in all. We learned later that six or seven people had refused to get on the plane.
"There was no fuss or panic. People just calmly and quietly got off the plane. There were no racist taunts or any remarks directed at the men.
"It was an eerie scene, very quiet. The children were starting to ask what was going on. We tried to play it down."
Mr Schofield, 40, an area sales manager, said: "When the men were taken off they didn't argue or say a word. They just picked up their coats and obeyed the police. They seemed resigned to the fact they were under suspicion.
"The captain and crew were very apologetic when we were asked to evacuate the plane for the security search. But there was no dissent.
"While we were waiting, everyone agreed the men looked dodgy. Some passengers were very panicky and in tears. There was a lot of talking about terrorists."
Patrick Mercer, the Tory Homeland Security spokesman, said last night: "This is a victory for terrorists. These people on the flight have been terrorised into behaving irrationally.
"For those unfortunate two men to be victimised because of the colour of their skin is just nonsense."
Monarch said last night: "The captain was concerned about the security surrounding the two gentlemen on the aircraft and the decision was taken to remove them from the flight for further security checks.
"The two passengers offloaded from the flight were later cleared by airport security and rebooked to travel back to Manchester on a later flight."
A spokesman for the Civil Guard in Malaga said: "These men had aroused suspicion because of their appearance and the fact that they were speaking in a foreign language thought to be an Arabic language, and the pilot was refusing to take off until they were escorted off the plane."
"Ya, he will be deposed. Was it because of something they said, or did, or because he was reacting to the mob?"
Let me ask you something. We live in a free society. Are we not free to decide what risks we will take and what risks we will not take? In essence, that is the question that several people who did not board the plane made. It is also the decision that some who were on board made, and the pilot made?
You are looking at this from hindsight, but in reality, you and I do not know what got the dander of several people up. What we do know is that something did get their dander up.
I think that each one of them had a right to protect themselves. I believe that it is my right to not board a plane if I sense danger. I believe it is a pilot's perogative to not fly if he/she senses danger, and I believe that, so long as the plane is landed, it is the perogative of anyone already onboard to get off the plane if they sense danger.
Armed black muslims? Have you ever heard these people speak? God help us all.
Who wants a bunch of crazed islamo-facists flying around overhead? Not me! All that does is increase the odds of them blowing something else up.
BTW - is that paradise paved with asphalt, concrete or RCC?
Agree with everything you both are saying!
My youngest daughter and I spent four nights at DisneyWorld last week and noticed the lack of Arabs. Most of the people from other countries we met at the Contemporary Hotel while waiting for the monorail or while on the monorail were from the British Isles, France, Austrailia, Germany, and Italy. It was really nice -- the security was tight to get in the various parks as you had to have your bags and packages completely checked. They also take a fingerprint or two fingers together with your pass when you go through the entrance every time.
But not all Middle Easterners are Arabs. Iranians are Persian, and I don't think they are like too much by Arabs.
"Some passengers were very panicky and in tears"
Somewhere along the line in life, there will be similar circumstances with similar people and those people will be right. This is not an if, it is a when.
That's the great thing about living in the middle of America -- we are not that far from anywhere in the lower 48! I had already decided against flying anytime soon and this article convinced me even more!
A queue is one type of list, the operation of which can be summed up as "first come, first serve". The typical alternative is called a stack, where the last item on the list is first to be operated upon.
In England, the nationalities you listed, are referred to as ORIENTALS. Egyptians, Jordanians, Saudis, Pakistanis, etc. are referred to as "ASIANS".
this article bends over backwards to NOT tell us what language the men were speaking.
Maybe if the planes' courses were locked in and flown by autopilot, emergency controls unlockable only from the ground on a two-key system, the holder of at least one of which was a US military veteran with first-hand experience combating jihadis, I'd be OK with that.
I will continue to fly twice a week, or more. We are now flying more charters (domestic). The whole concept of muzzies making travel miserable for us must be turned around. We are compelled to demand that our representatives shut down the mid-eastern terror supporting states. A purely defensive posture will never win this war of will. We must project confidence and make the enemy miserable. At least that is what I humbly do. While causing as much humiliation and degradation for the opponent as humanly possible ;)
There's no media conspiracy. This is from a British paper. In England, "Asian" signifies South Asian: i.e. Pakistani, Indian, Bangladeshi, etc. Those whom we in the US would call Asian are referred to there as "Orientals".
-ccm
"For those unfortunate two men to be victimised because of the colour of their skin is just nonsense."
Just go stuff your politcal correctness Patrick. If you aren't going to profile these people then the passengers will. The PC crap needs to end, we're at war.
This is a great post!
I keep asking: Where is the Islamic version of the 442nd Regimental Combat Team of World War II fame? History of 442nd RCT When the Moderate Muslim community comes up with a reincarnation of this I might start taking them seriously as citizens loyal to the United States of America. It's a high standard, but as my old Gunny used to say, "Tough".
Regards,
TS
They could easily have been speaking Hebrew or Hindi. The British mum on holiday wouldn't have been able to tell the difference; she just didn't like the swarthy appearance and foreign lingo. For all she (and we) know, these guys might hate Muslims as much as anybody here. In fact, I note they mention these fellows had long hair, which is a no-no for a devout Muslim man.
Nobody takes a back seat to me in my desire to see fundamentalist Islam swept off the face of the earth. However, we have got to do better than this. Down this road lies idiocy like the Arizona man who shot a harmless non-Muslim Sikh because he didn't like the turban he wore.
-ccm
Packrat35, me too. I haven't flown since 2002. I did not like long distance driving, but I learned to love it. I can take as much stuff as I want with me, and no hassles at the airport.
When the TSA screener bot poked his finger in my belly to see who knows what, I had to restrain myself from putting his wand where the sun don't shine.
That's when flying became unnecessary for me.
I already hated to fly. Will never forget after 9-11 when my youngest daughter and I were searched, searched again, and then again because we had a one-way ticket back to OK after driving out with my daughter in her car to the North Island NAS where she reported for duty. I have a government ID but it made NO difference.
At the next gate were two Arabs who went through security with no problem while myself, my daughter, three Marines, two women coming back from overseas who had just cleared customs, an elderly lady in a wheel chair, and an older couple had all our bags searched and we had to go through other searches at every step. I finally asked the person at the gate why they were not searching them and she said they had round trip tickets. I was not a happy camper.
When the security folks start profiling, then I may consider flying again but I have my serious doubts.
I have also been against carry-on luggage for so long that I am glad to see it curtailed because the people's bags get bigger and bigger and they are a royal pain in the neck getting on the plane and off the plane.
I will stick to driving! I am not going to be sitting there worrying when I see someone suspicious. My daughter even made me promise when I go back down to drive and not fly so she doesn't have to worry as much.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.