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Flight 297 Passenger: Incident Bigger Than AirTran Claims
WSB-TV ^ | 12-7-09

Posted on 12/07/2009 7:20:47 PM PST by STARWISE

Rumors continued to circulate Monday via e-mail and the Internet about what exactly happened on an AirTran flight at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in November.

At the time, AirTran told Channel 2 Action News that an unruly passenger on a cell phone forced the pilot to take the plane back to the gate. Monday, a passenger said the situation went well beyond that.

“It was extremely intense. I’ve never experienced anything like that,” said passenger Brent Brown.

Brown runs a security consultant company and is a frequent flier. But even for him, he said the events of Flight 297 were disturbing and frightening. As the Houston-bound flight taxied to the runway, several in a group of about a dozen men of Middle Eastern descent started walking the aisles and using their cell phones, Brown said.

Brown said he could tell from the flight attendants' actions that the situation was more than just a single passenger misbehaving.

"This was a big step ahead of that. You could tell that they were distressed and that they were getting very much uncooperative people in the back," said Brown. "So when the pilot turned the plane around, not only was I not surprised I was proud that he had made that effort to secure the cabin."

Back at the gate, Brown said the situation did not improve. He said he was sitting toward the front and he never saw law enforcement enter the plane. He also said that no one informed passengers of what was going on.

"They weren't speaking to us. And they didn't speak to us at all for at least an hour. Our only interaction was with the crew that was already upset at the way they were obviously being handled," said Brown.

Within days, the incident went viral on the Internet which prompted news coverage. Internet rumor control sites seemingly couldn’t make heads or tails of the incident. AirTran responded by posting an article that called most of the claims an "urban myth."

"And then after the fact, when (AirTran) apparently issued a statement that says, in effect, that this was a customer service issue or someone was on the phone...they're dead wrong," said Brown.

The crew, including the pilots, decided not to continue with the flight.

Brown said AirTran put about 10 of the 12-man group back on the plane with a new crew. Most of the original passengers chose not to re-board and instead got on a different flight.

Because of privacy laws, the airline would not identify any of the men involved in the November incident.

An AirTran spokesman called the incident "isolated" and said the airline considers the case closed.


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Front Page News; Government; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: airlines; airlinesecurity; airtran; airtranflight297; airtranflt297; arabmen; banglist; dryrunquestion; flight297
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RAW VIDEO: Flight 297 Passenger Talks About AirTran Incident

Move along ... nothing here ....

1 posted on 12/07/2009 7:20:49 PM PST by STARWISE
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To: penelopesire; seekthetruth; television is just wrong; jcsjcm; BP2; Pablo Mac; April Lexington; ...

~~PING!


2 posted on 12/07/2009 7:22:51 PM PST by STARWISE (They (LIBS-STILL) think of this WOT as Bush's war, not America's war- Richard Miniter)
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To: STARWISE

Airtran is covering it up. And don’t believe Leftwing sites such as Snopes automatically.


3 posted on 12/07/2009 7:23:26 PM PST by Stepan12 (Palin & Bolton in 2012)
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To: STARWISE

They can’t put the genie back in the bottle.


4 posted on 12/07/2009 7:24:16 PM PST by Eaker (Kaiden sez, "If you have a problem and If explosives are an option then explosives are THE answer.")
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To: Eaker

These are not the Droids you are looking for.


5 posted on 12/07/2009 7:26:48 PM PST by gibtx2 (End Tenure)
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To: Eaker

They are worthless, politcally correct, terrorist fellators.


6 posted on 12/07/2009 7:28:13 PM PST by pissant (THE Conservative party: www.falconparty.com)
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To: gibtx2
These are not the Droids you are looking for.

No, but THIS is. :-)

Motorola Droid

7 posted on 12/07/2009 7:28:59 PM PST by TChris ("Hello", the politician lied.)
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To: STARWISE

WSB-TV, huh? I can’t find what network they’re affiliated with on their site.
Canada Free Press?
Is there a KNOWN media outlet that’s reporting the facts of this incident?


8 posted on 12/07/2009 7:30:08 PM PST by TruthHound ("He who does not punish evil commands it to be done." --Leonardo da Vinci)
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To: STARWISE

I rarely fly but will be in a few weeks and I just wish we had a government as diligent about terrorists/terrorism as the security wannabees will be with my wheelchair bound wife at the checkpoint.


9 posted on 12/07/2009 7:32:12 PM PST by DonaldC (A nation cannot stand in the absence of religious principle.)
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To: AdmSmith; Berosus; bigheadfred; Convert from ECUSA; dervish; Ernest_at_the_Beach; Fred Nerks; ...
At the time, AirTran told Channel 2 Action News that an unruly passenger on a cell phone forced the pilot to take the plane back to the gate... As the Houston-bound flight taxied to the runway, several in a group of about a dozen men of Middle Eastern descent started walking the aisles and using their cell phones, Brown said... Back at the gate, Brown said the situation did not improve. He said he was sitting toward the front and he never saw law enforcement enter the plane. He also said that no one informed passengers of what was going on... Brown said AirTran put about 10 of the 12-man group back on the plane with a new crew. Most of the original passengers chose not to re-board and instead got on a different flight. Because of privacy laws, the airline would not identify any of the men involved in the November incident. An AirTran spokesman called the incident "isolated" and said the airline considers the case closed.
Oh, and BTW, screw AirTran.
10 posted on 12/07/2009 7:32:36 PM PST by SunkenCiv (https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/__Since Jan 3, 2004__Profile updated Monday, January 12, 2009)
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To: TruthHound

WSB TV 2 is home for Atlanta local news, weather, and traffic reports, the latest Braves, Falcons, Thrashers, and Hawks scores, and Georgia lottery results. Find a job or a restaurant in Atlanta, and sign up for late breaking local updates from Channel 2 Action News.

http://www.wsbtv.com/index.html


11 posted on 12/07/2009 7:33:23 PM PST by STARWISE (They (LIBS-STILL) think of this WOT as Bush's war, not America's war- Richard Miniter)
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To: Stepan12

Snopes reeks .............. of liberalism.


12 posted on 12/07/2009 7:34:01 PM PST by STARWISE (They (LIBS-STILL) think of this WOT as Bush's war, not America's war- Richard Miniter)
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To: TruthHound
WSB-TV, huh?

They are an ABC affiliate.

Wake up.

13 posted on 12/07/2009 7:34:39 PM PST by buccaneer81 (ECOMCON)
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To: TruthHound

WSB is the ABC affiliate locally.

For anyone who doesn’t feel like clicking, reading and clicking. Here is the direct link to Brent Brown’s interview. It runs almost 10 minutes. Sounds like he is in the security business.
http://www.wsbtv.com/video/21890485/index.html


14 posted on 12/07/2009 7:36:32 PM PST by laxcoach (Government is greedy. Taxpayers who want their own money are not greedy.)
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To: STARWISE

Regardless of how the company feels, this incident is hardly closed.


15 posted on 12/07/2009 7:36:38 PM PST by Secret Agent Man (I'd like to tell you, but then I'd have to kill you.)
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To: buccaneer81; TruthHound

One would think that someone with ‘hound’
in their name would by nature be compelled
to search things out, wouldn’t one ...?

;)


16 posted on 12/07/2009 7:36:52 PM PST by STARWISE (They (LIBS-STILL) think of this WOT as Bush's war, not America's war- Richard Miniter)
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To: TruthHound

I noticed how many posters seem interested in belittling this story about a Aran Terrorst dry run with false comments like yours !

WSBTV is channel 2 the ABC affliate in Atlanta !


17 posted on 12/07/2009 7:37:47 PM PST by ncalburt (San Fran Nan , Your Harvey Milk was gunned down by a fellow Dem-RAT)
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To: pissant

Got that right!


18 posted on 12/07/2009 7:38:33 PM PST by Eaker (Kaiden sez, "If you have a problem and If explosives are an option then explosives are THE answer.")
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To: STARWISE

Terrorists? Maybe!

Could have been another group of mooselimbs trying to cash in like the Minnesota Imams.

But to keep something like this underwraps shows another attempt by people in power to keep us from the reality of a very real threat.


19 posted on 12/07/2009 7:39:12 PM PST by diverteach
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To: STARWISE
I have noticed a large number of unknown posters trying to belittle or make false claims about this story.

It real scary to see how organized the Terrorists and their supports are on the US Internet.

20 posted on 12/07/2009 7:40:57 PM PST by ncalburt (San Fran Nan , Your Harvey Milk was gunned down by a fellow Dem-RAT)
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