Qantas admits Arab 'terror' blunder
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Qantas admits Arab 'terror' blunder
September 29, 2003
QANTAS admitted Monday that its cabin staff delayed a flight because they thought four Arabs travelling as guests of Australia's national air force might be terrorists.
Flight attendants on a domestic flight from Sydney to Perth raised the alarm after seeing three of the men sit in business class and a fourth in economy, an airline spokeswoman said.
Four flight attendants were concerned the passengers might be a security threat, and refused to allow the aircraft to take off. The airline was forced to replace the cabin crew and the plane left 69 minutes late.
Airline chief executive Geoff Dixon was furious and wanted the attendants dismissed, the Australian Financial Review reported. However, the Qantas spokeswoman said they still had their jobs.
The four men were from the United Arab Emirates. They apparently attracted suspicion because of their looks and the fact they were speaking a foreign language. The incident occurred earlier this month.
A Department of Defence spokeswoman said the four men were air force personnel who were in Australia to discuss air force to air force cooperation. They were travelling with an Australian military official at the time.
"They were here on an official visit at the invitation of the chief of the air force," the spokeswoman said.
Agence France-Presse
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