US pilot refuses to fly with Muslim leaders, asks them to get off the plane

AgenciesTags : Muslim religious leaders asked to get off US planePosted: Sat May 07 2011, 09:04 hrsNashville:

Two Muslim religious leaders say they were asked to leave a commercial airliner in Memphis and were told it was because the pilot refused to fly with them aboard.

Masudur Rahman, who is also an adjunct instructor of Arabic at the University of Memphis, said by phone from the terminal at Memphis International Airport that he and another imam had already been allowed to board their Delta Connection flight to Charlotte, North Carolina before they were asked to get off the plane.

Transportation Security Administration spokesman Jon Allen in Atlanta confirmed the incident and said it was not initiated by that agency.

A Delta Air Lines spokeswoman said the flight was operated by Atlantic Southeast Airlines, which is also based in Atlanta.

"We take security and safety very seriously and the event is currently under investigation," Atlantic Southeast spokesman Jarek Beem said Friday evening.Both passengers are Memphis-area residents. Rahman said he was dressed in traditional Indian clothing and his traveling companion was dressed in Arab garb, including traditional headgear.

Rahman said he and Mohamed Zaghloul, of the Islamic Association of Greater Memphis, were cleared by security agents and boarded the plane for an 8:40 am. departure on Friday. The aircraft pulled away from the gate, but the pilot then announced the plane must return, Rahman said. When it did, the imams were asked to go back to the boarding gate where Rahman said they were told the pilot was refusing to accept them because some other passengers could be uncomfortable.http://www.indianexpress.com/news/us-pilot-refuses-to-fly-with-muslim-leaders-asks-them-to-get-off-the-plane/787187/