placemark
Airline says bias wasn’t factor in canceled flight
DETROIT (AP) — A lawyer for American Airlines said Friday it was the suspicious behavior of five men of Iraqi descent, not discrimination, that caused the pilot of a Chicago-bound flight to return to the gate in August 2007.
Attorney Michael McQuillen asked a judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed by the Detroit-area men, who claim their nationality caused Capt. John Plummer to ground Flight 590 before takeoff in San Diego.
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“One took off his shoes. One went to the bathroom, and one put a blanket on his head. ... If a white or African-American person had done that on a plane, it would have aroused no suspicion,” Garcia said.
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