Free Republic

FBI special agent T. Scott Hendricks has filed an affidavit explaining why Southwest Airlines diverted a San Diego-Chicago flight to Amarillo late Monday and booted six passengers off the flight. The six, said to be members of a San Diego area soccer team, were subsequently arrested and charged with “interference with a flight crew and abetting.” Basically, according to Hendricks per Southwest, the passengers –Khalid Yohana, 19; Wasim Imad Shaker, 23; Essa Solaqa, 20; Ghazwan Assad Shaba, 21; Jonathan Khalid Petras, 20; and Saiman Hermez, 19– were refusing orders from the flight attendants, challenging their authority and being mean to...

It certainly appeared to have been a premeditated, pre-planned disruption of a routine flight, perhaps designed to test responses or as a larger plot to intimidate and thereby garner privileges or concessions. It’s not likely that the six despicable individuals involved all just happened to find each other as members of the same Arab soccer team, although they certainly do deserve each other’s company. A Southwest Airlines flight from San Diego to Chicago was rerouted to Amarillo late Monday, with six passengers removed and subsequently arrested on charges of “interference with a flight crew and abetting.” FBI special agent T....