A CRUISE ship captain has been forced to apologise after putting up an ‘offensive’ sign which welcomed his passengers to ‘Gibraltor’ – printed on a SPANISH flag.

The sign outraged locals so much that Chief Minister Fabian Picardo ordered a port official to board the Koningsdam boat and order it be taken down.

Picardo also demanded that the captain of ship, from the US-based Holland America company, write a formal letter of apology.

The captain wrote a letter within the hour, saying he was sorry he used the wrong flag.

He said that he ‘fully respects the history of Gibraltar as a British territory’ and understands that ‘using the wrong flag can affect Gibraltarians’.

The captain added that his team would revise their on-board procedures to ensure these type of errors don’t happen in the future.