Muslim woman to sue after being taken off flight

A Muslim-American woman was removed from an aeroplane as it prepared for take off after a flight attendant told security staff she heard her say “it’s a go” into her mobile phone.

However, US citizen Irum Abbassi, who was travelling out of San Diego’s International Airport claims she actually said “I’ve got to go”, according to UK daily The Mail.

The mother-of-three was searched and then made her way back to the flight - but the aeroplane's crew refused to allow her back on board.

She then took the next flight - and is now suing Southwest Airlines for the 'humiliating' incident, the report said.

The psychology graduate student at San Jose State University filed the lawsuit in federal court in San Diego.

Her lawyer James McElroy told the newspaper: “Suspicions were aroused because of her religion. She would not have been removed from the plane if she had been a blond-haired, blue-eyed woman."

Abbasi was taken off the San Jose-bound flight in March. The lawsuit said she felt "horrified, embarrassed, humiliated and confused” by the incident.

Abbasi claims she had said 'I have to go" to a Verizon representative because the aeroplane was about to depart.

Abbasi was searched by Transportation Security Administration (TSA) staff and given clearance to reboard the flight within three minutes.

But the pilot claimed the crew was uncomfortable flying with her and refused to allow her aboard.

She was given an apology, a voucher and a boarding pass for the next San Jose flight.

It meant she missed a critical research experiment that she needed to be able to complete for her graduate studies, the lawsuit added.

Chris Mainz, spokesman for Dallas-based Southwest Airlines, said the company apologised to Abbasi for her inconvenience and her concerns were addressed “in good faith”.

He added: “In this case, our employees raised a safety concern based on the customer's behaviour, and we had a duty to thoroughly address those concerns before clearing the customer to travel.”

In the past Southwest has received widespread notoriety for removing passengers, the newspaper reported.

In September the airline booted off a female couple who kissed during a flight.

Earlier this year it also removed Green Day singer Billy Joe Armstrong and a University of New Mexico football player for wearing trousers that were too baggy.