AirTran apologises to Muslim family removed from plane

Washington: AirTran Airways has apologised to a Muslim family that was ordered off a flight to Florida over security concerns.

The airlines had refused to rebook the family despite requests from FBI agents who had cleared them for travel.

Atif Irfan, his seven family members and a friend were removed from the flight after a passenger reported hearing the group talking about the safest place to sit on the plane.

"We regret that the issue escalated to the heightened security level it did," AirTran said in a statement on Friday afternoon.

"But we trust everyone understands that the security and the safety of our passengers is paramount," the airline said.

The airline said it had refunded the family's money and offered a free flight to Washington for the family.

Kashif Irfan, another family member, told CNN he was "very appreciative and surprised" by AirTran's apology. "It's a very generous gesture," he said.

The airline earlier issued issued a press release, saying it did not rebook the family because the security concern had not been resolved and because a member of the group "became irate and made inappropriate comments."