Qatar sheik holds up plane over seating
A row over the seating of the wives of a Gulf VIP held up a British Airways flight from Milan for almost three hours, resulting in some 50 fellow passengers missing connections.
The trouble began when a party of seven from Qatar boarded BA's 3.55pm flight from Linate airport to Heathrow. According to Italian media, they consisted of two men, the three wives of the head of the group, a cook and another servant.
The leader of the party, said to be a member of the ruling al-Thani family, was reportedly appalled to find his wives had been seated elsewhere and, in each case, alongside an unknown male passenger.
After failing to arrange an exchange of seats, he and the other man tried to involve the pilot. A BA spokesman was unable to confirm the identities of those involved, but he said: "Two passengers stood up whilst the aircraft was taxiing and refused to sit down. All passengers have to have their seat belts fastened in preparation for take-off. As these passengers would not comply, the captain had no option but to return to the terminal and offload the passengers in question."
By the time the plane, carrying 122 passengers, reached the terminal, the group said it would continue. But the pilot refused to take off. After mediation by the police and a representative of the Qatari embassy, the group left the plane. By then, the pilot had lost his landing slot and it was not until after 6.30pm that the aircraft departed. The Qatari party got seats on an Alitalia flight at 7.40pm.
The head of the group was named in Italian reports as Sheikh Badr bin Khalifa al-Thani, but last night the Qatari embassy in Rome was unable to confirm his identity.
A Qatar sheik held up a British Airways flight at Milan’s Linate airport for nearly three hours after discovering three of his female relatives had been seated next to men they did not know.
When none of the other business class passengers agreed to swap seats, the sheik, a member of Qatar’s ruling family, went to the pilot, who had already started the engine, to complain, an airport official said.
But the pilot ordered him and his traveling companions, the three women, two men, a cook and a servant, off the plane.
The London-bound flight took off nearly three hours behind schedule Thursday evening and around 50 of the 115 passengers missed connecting flights.
Traditions in the conservative Gulf Arab region bar women from mixing with unrelated men.
A packed British Airways flight from Italy was held up for nearly four hours after three Qatari princesses refused to sit next to men they did not know.
Dozens of British holidaymakers had to wait patiently while the three royals, who were returning from a day's shopping excursion to the Italian fashion centre of Milan, refused to take their seats.
Furious passengers on the flight whistled and clapped before the three women were escorted off and took another flight to London.
The incident began as passengers boarded flight 563 from Milan's Linate airport to Heathrow.
The women, all members of the oil-rich emir of Qatar's family, Bader Bin Khalifa Al Thani, were booked into business class along with the emir and an entourage of cooks and other staff.
However as passengers were fastening seat belts the women got up and refused to take their assigned seats as they were next to men they did not know.
Cabin crew tried to rearrange the seats but passengers travelling together refused to give up their allotted positions.
Eventually the captain was called in to try and mediate but after more than three hours of wrangling on the tarmac in scorching temperatures, he decided the best way forward was to offload the women.
Police and diplomats from the Qatar consulate in Milan were also called in. The Qatar party eventually left Milan for London on an Alitalia flight after free places were found for them in business class but the cooks and entourage were seated in economy.
A spokesman at Linate confirmed: "There was an incident involving women of the Qatar royal family."
The trouble began when a party of seven from Qatar boarded BA's 3.55pm flight from Linate airport to Heathrow. According to Italian media, they consisted of two men, the three wives of the head of the group, a cook and another servant.
The leader of the party, said to be a member of the ruling al-Thani family, was reportedly appalled to find his wives had been seated elsewhere and, in each case, alongside an unknown male passenger.
After failing to arrange an exchange of seats, he and the other man tried to involve the pilot. A BA spokesman was unable to confirm the identities of those involved, but he said: "Two passengers stood up whilst the aircraft was taxiing and refused to sit down. All passengers have to have their seat belts fastened in preparation for take-off. As these passengers would not comply, the captain had no option but to return to the terminal and offload the passengers in question."
By the time the plane, carrying 122 passengers, reached the terminal, the group said it would continue. But the pilot refused to take off. After mediation by the police and a representative of the Qatari embassy, the group left the plane. By then, the pilot had lost his landing slot and it was not until after 6.30pm that the aircraft departed. The Qatari party got seats on an Alitalia flight at 7.40pm.
The head of the group was named in Italian reports as Sheikh Badr bin Khalifa al-Thani, but last night the Qatari embassy in Rome was unable to confirm his identity.
A Qatar sheik held up a British Airways flight at Milan’s Linate airport for nearly three hours after discovering three of his female relatives had been seated next to men they did not know.
When none of the other business class passengers agreed to swap seats, the sheik, a member of Qatar’s ruling family, went to the pilot, who had already started the engine, to complain, an airport official said.
But the pilot ordered him and his traveling companions, the three women, two men, a cook and a servant, off the plane.
The London-bound flight took off nearly three hours behind schedule Thursday evening and around 50 of the 115 passengers missed connecting flights.
Traditions in the conservative Gulf Arab region bar women from mixing with unrelated men.
A packed British Airways flight from Italy was held up for nearly four hours after three Qatari princesses refused to sit next to men they did not know.
Dozens of British holidaymakers had to wait patiently while the three royals, who were returning from a day's shopping excursion to the Italian fashion centre of Milan, refused to take their seats.
Furious passengers on the flight whistled and clapped before the three women were escorted off and took another flight to London.
The incident began as passengers boarded flight 563 from Milan's Linate airport to Heathrow.
The women, all members of the oil-rich emir of Qatar's family, Bader Bin Khalifa Al Thani, were booked into business class along with the emir and an entourage of cooks and other staff.
However as passengers were fastening seat belts the women got up and refused to take their assigned seats as they were next to men they did not know.
Cabin crew tried to rearrange the seats but passengers travelling together refused to give up their allotted positions.
Eventually the captain was called in to try and mediate but after more than three hours of wrangling on the tarmac in scorching temperatures, he decided the best way forward was to offload the women.
Police and diplomats from the Qatar consulate in Milan were also called in. The Qatar party eventually left Milan for London on an Alitalia flight after free places were found for them in business class but the cooks and entourage were seated in economy.
A spokesman at Linate confirmed: "There was an incident involving women of the Qatar royal family."