Virgin America Flight Crew Reject Prominent Iranian American Lawyer
The New York Times: A prominent Iranian-American Texas lawyer was not allowed to board a Virgin America flight home from New York last November because of a subjective decision by a crew member at La Guardia Airport in Queens, he and the airline said.
The lawyer, Robert B. Abtahi, the vice chairman of the Dallas Plan Commission, the official body that makes planning and zoning recommendations to the City Council, had been returning from Bermuda, where he had been celebrating the first anniversary of his wedding with his wife, who lives in New York. Asked whether he thought he had been profiled because of his appearance, Mr. Abtahi, who is Iranian-American, said he hoped not. He had not shaved after spending a week on the beach.
Mr. Abtahi, who goes by “Bobby,” said the reason he was given was that the captain and crew did not feel comfortable with him on the flight. When he pressed for specifics, a gate agent told him that he had cut off a crew member in a revolving door while arriving at the airport, he said. He was forced to cancel the ticket and rebook on another airline.
Virgin America said in a statement sent by email that airline officials had reviewed the incident and had apologized: "We are sorry Mr. Abtahi had this experience today, as it was not representative of the guest service for which we are known."
Mr. Abtahi said he wanted the airline to tighten policies giving flight crew members broad discretion to decide whether to allow a passenger on board. "We have all these regulations around flying and safety, and that seems the most subjective one," he said. "I have PreCheck and Global Entry and I’m not acting crazy; I haven’t been drinking. I’m just standing."
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