02 JAN 2010 _________________________________________ *Were Flight 253 Passengers Endangered by Federal Authorities *Official reverses, confirms 2nd arrest from Flight 253 *What to Expect as T.S.A. Tightens Airport Security *FAA watching American Airlines closely after botched landings *Paper pilot certificates expire in three months, FAA reminds *Flight-diverting safety threat proves strictly ornamental *Remains of Antarctica's first plane found ****************************************** Were Flight 253 Passengers Endangered by Federal Authorities Security breach in handling of Flight 253 passengers By CHRISTINE NEGRONI A spokesman for the US Customs and Border Protection said that a second passenger on Northwest Airlines flight 253 was detained at the Detroit airport on Christmas, confirming accounts of at least four passengers on the flight. The episode has security experts questioning whether the handling of the passengers on the ground created an additional risk at the airport. In the days following the attempted terrorist attack, lawyers Lori and Kurt Haskell of Detroit and Daniel Huisinga of Tennessee said that while they were being held in the baggage claim area of the airport, a K9 dog alerted police to the bag of a fellow passenger. “One of the dogs found something in the carry-on bags of an Indian man.” Mr. Haskell said. “He was immediately taken into an interrogation room and came out in handcuffs and taken away.” The Customs Department spokesman Ronald Smith initially said that no one other than Umar Farouk Abdul Mutallab was detained at the airport that day. On Thursday he said a man had been detained from another flight that arrived at the same time. In an email Thursday evening, Mr. Smith, told me he had been misinformed and confirmed much of the Haskells’ account. “I now know that a passenger from flight 253 did have a canine alert to his carry-on baggage in the baggage area of the CBP facility. He was placed in handcuffs and escorted to an interview room where he was interviewed and searched,” Mr. Smith said in an email. After the man was led away, several passengers said the group was moved into another room. “All we knew is all of a sudden they said ‘everybody move, we’re moving you’, said Roey Rosenblith, an American businessman living in Uganda who was also on the flight. Mr. Haskell confirmed in a phone conversation with me that passengers were told, “I’m sure you all saw what happened and can read between the lines and figure out why you are being moved,” which he said he interpreted as a reference to the passenger who had been led away by police. According to Mr. Smith, a search of the man’s bag, proved negative and he was released. Mr. Smith declined to identify the passenger who was questioned. Security experts meanwhile tell me they are concerned about the handling of Flight 253 passengers. “As soon as the plane landed, all the people should have been led off the airplane as fast as possible, said Richard Bloom, director of terrorism, intelligence and security studies at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University and an aviation security expert with the Transportation Research Board. In fact, when the plane landed, luggage in the airplane cargo hold was unloaded on the tarmac and searched, according to Mr. Smith but hand luggage was not inspected at all. Passengers told me it was 45 minutes to an hour before police dogs were brought into the area where they were being held. “How do you know somebody else didn’t have something on them?” Mr. Bloom asked, calling the handling a security shortfall. “There should have been an immediate search of each individual leaving all the stuff in the aircraft for a search of what might have been dangerous.” A former chief of staff for the Federal Aviation Administration, said “This is a big deal because of the outrageous number of security breaches that event has brought to light.” Michael Goldfarb, now a private aviation consultant said “Clearly the passengers should have been taken off the plane and all their bags searched. Most security people would say, don’t touch the scene, prudent security would be to not touch the scene." On Friday, a European aviation expert who asked not to be identified told me that a search of the hand luggage separate from the passengers and prior to bringing it into the airport would have been reasonable, though he did not think there were specific regulations requring it. http://christinenegroni.blogspot.com/2010/01/were-flight-253-passengers-enda ngered.html ***************** Official reverses, confirms 2nd arrest from Flight 253 Couple on 253 did see 2nd man in cuffs, customs officer says Detroit -- A U.S. Customs official reversed himself Friday, admitting a passenger from Northwest Flight 253 was placed in handcuffs, searched and released after a security dog alerted officers to the passenger's carry-on luggage. Ronald G. Smith, chief U.S. Customs and Border Protection officer in the Detroit area, sent an e-mail to The Detroit News late Thursday apologizing that the information on the passenger -- which was made public by a pair of Taylor attorneys, Kurt and Lori Haskell, who were passengers on the flight -- was not officially announced earlier. FBI officials had said only one man from the flight was arrested. That man, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, a 23-year-old Nigerian being held at the Milan federal prison, is charged with trying to destroy an aircraft and taking a destructive device aboard an aircraft. He created a small fire before landing when he tried to set off explosive chemicals hidden in his underwear, according to court records. Passengers jumped on him and put out the blaze with the help of the flight crew, witnesses said. The Haskells told federal investigators they saw another man being questioned by federal officials and led away from the airport baggage area in handcuffs after a sniffer dog reacted to something in the man's carry-on luggage. The couple said the man, who appeared to be in his early 30s and of Indian descent, was taken to a room for questioning and later led out of that room in handcuffs. In previous statements to the media, Smith had said the Haskells' account was a composite of two events that occurred at the airport around the time passengers got off Flight 253. The incidents were unrelated to the terrorist incident, Smith had said. Yet in the e-mail, which also was sent to the couple, Smith said he had just received information he did not have previously and hoped "it will clear up the matter." Smith said a second man from Flight 253 was handcuffed, escorted to a room where he was interviewed and searched. Nothing was found. The man was not arrested or detained, and no further information was available about him, Smith said. "This information is consistent with eyewitness accounts," Smith said. Reached by phone on Friday, Lori Haskell said the e-mail was a small victory for the couple, yet it angered them at the same time. "I just want them to look into our claims," Lori Haskell said. "Our story has been the same since day one because we are telling the truth." The Haskells, who were questioned Tuesday by FBI agents at their law office, earlier told The Detroit News that Kurt Haskell saw Abdulmutallab in Amsterdam, Netherlands, apparently trying to board the flight without a passport. Kurt Haskell said he saw a well-dressed Indian man, who was older than the Indian man arrested at Detroit Metro, attempting to negotiate with airline officials to get Abdulmutallab on the plane without a passport. He appeared to be trying to pass Abdulmutallab off as a Sudanese refugee, Haskell said. Nigerian officials have said Abdulmutallab presented a valid Nigerian passport and multi-entry U.S. visa when he began his trip in Lagos. Federal officials seized both documents in Detroit, a person familiar with the investigation said. Officials have said Abdulmutallab's name was included in a large database of people with possible terrorist ties but was not on the more exclusive no-fly list. http://www.detnews.com/article/20100102/METRO01/1020331/1410/METRO01/Officia l-reverses--confirms-2nd-arrest-from-Flight-253 *************** What to Expect as T.S.A. Tightens Airport Security By CHRISTINE NEGRONI The best way to prepare for the new security measures at the airport? Pretty much as you did for the old rules, experts say. A security checkpoint at Newark International Airport. Experts say to be prepared for new safety measures, but not to overreact. Airport Security - That means becoming familiar with the Transportation Security Administration rules on what is allowed in carry-on and checked bags. A detailed list of the rules for items like liquids, holiday foods and gifts — don’t wrap them — is available at www.tsa.gov. And then, when waiting in line at the security checkpoint, use the time to prepare. “Have your Ziploc bag on top, take your laptop out of your carry-on and put it on top in the gray bin, and that makes things go a lot faster,” said Michael Conway, a spokesman for the Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport. As for traveling families, David Magaña, a spokesman for Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, suggested this: “Talk to your children. Envision the whole trip and pretend it all out so they understand they’re going to go through the magnetometer by themselves so they understand what they are going to see.” But perhaps the most important piece of advice is not to overreact. Don’t get to the airport hours before your flight. It won’t help, and it may even cause more problems. “What we’ve been seeing over the last four days is a huge clump of people in the morning,” Mr. Conway said. “These experts are saying ‘show up at the airport four hours before your flight.’ It’s not necessary. There’s a huge clump of people checking in at 6 a.m. creating an artificial backup.” Suzanne Treviño, the T.S.A. spokeswoman at Los Angeles International Airport, reminded travelers to make sure prohibited items were not unintentionally packed. “We’re finding passengers that mistakenly left items like ammunition and knives and other things they used on a camping trip or hunting trip,” Mrs. Treviño said. Even items in checked bags can cause delays. A traveler in Phoenix packed a belt adorned with a rhinestone-encrusted hand grenade, Mrs. Treviño said. A bomb appraisal unit had to be called in to examine the bag. “We encourage passengers to think about what they are wearing and putting into their baggage that might cause unwittingly a security incident for us,” Mrs. Treviño said. But preparing for any new security measures is not straightforward. The T.S.A. has purposely been vague about what travelers will encounter, other than more police at the airport and additional layers of security. “Passengers should be prepared for additional measures of security, but we can’t say what they are,” said Lauren Gaches, a spokeswoman for the T.S.A. The stepped-up security will be most obvious on international flights bound for the United States. Passengers will be searched twice: at the main security checkpoint and again at the gate. “T.S.A. requires additional checks of the passengers and cabin baggage,” said Olivier Jankovec, director general of the Airports Council International Europe. “It is a solution for an emergency like what we are going through, but it cannot be sustainable from an operational point of view on an ongoing basis,” Mr. Jankovec said. It will be up to the pilots on those flights to decide whether to restrict passenger movement or the use of blankets or other items often held on passengers’ laps during the last hour of flight. Some airlines are turning off in-flight audio and video navigation programs that let passengers know the status of the flight. The T.S.A. also issued a last-minute extension to hundreds of pilots authorized to carry firearms under the Federal Flight Deck Officers Program. One airline captain said that before his flight left a European airport recently, he walked down one aisle of the airplane and back up the other, greeting each passenger. “I wanted to have a bit of two-way interface about who was on board,” said the pilot, who did not want to be identified because he was not permitted by his airline to speak to the press. “I wanted to see who wanted to make eye contact and see that everyone is acting vaguely normal.” http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/02/us/02bags.html **************** FAA watching American Airlines closely after botched landings On December 22, an American Airlines Boeing 737 overran a runway in Kingston, Jamaica, injuring 91 passengers. Washington (CNN) -- The FAA said Friday it is heightening scrutiny of American Airlines after the carrier had three landings go wrong in December. "In situations where there may be several incidents involving a single carrier over a short period of time, FAA inspectors increase their oversight, which we're doing now," FAA spokesman Lynn Lunsford said. The review was prompted by the botched landings of three planes between December 13 and December 24. In the December 13 incident, an MD-80 landing at Charlotte Douglas International Airport in North Carolina touched down and went off the left side of the runway. While trying to get back onto the runway, the plane's right wingtip touched the ground. On December 22, a Boeing 737 overran a runway amid heavy rain at Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, Jamaica, injuring 91 passengers. And on December 24, an MD-80 en route from Chicago, Illinois, struck a wingtip landing in Austin, Texas. Billy Sanez, a spokesman for American, told CNN Friday that the airline is cooperating with the investigation, which he said was routine in landing incidents. Lunsford said the review will help determine whether the botched landings "might be indicative of a larger issue." If so, he said "the FAA communicates its findings to the air carrier and assists in the development of the appropriate corrective action." http://www.cnn.com/2010/TRAVEL/01/01/american.airlines.tsa/ **************** Paper pilot certificates expire in three months, FAA reminds U.S. licensed pilots will not be able to exercise the privileges of their paper pilot certificates after March 31, the FAA is reminding airmen. Paper certificates issued under FAR Part 63 (flight engineers and navigators) and Part 65 (air traffic control tower operators, aircraft dispatchers, mechanics, repairmen and parachute riggers) won’t expire until March 31, 2013. According to FAR 61.19(h), “Duration of pilot certificates. Except for a temporary certificate issued under 61.17 or a student pilot certificate issued under paragraph (b) of this section, the holder of a paper pilot certificate issued under this part may not exercise the privileges of that certificate after March 31, 2010. Pilots can have their certificates replaced for $2 via postal mail or the Internet. The FAA’s Web site has instructions on how to order a replacement pilot certificate, as well as how to change a certificate number from a social-security number and simultaneously order a plastic replacement. http://www.charterx.com/resources/article.aspx?id=5787 **************** Flight-diverting safety threat proves strictly ornamental ORLANDO, Fla. – An Orlando, Fla.-bound Northwest Airlines flight from Detroit was diverted to Nashville, Tenn., on Friday after a suspicious item was discovered aboard the plane. The item: a Christmas ornament. “A suspicious item was found, and out of an abundance of caution, the pilot decided to divert to Nashville,” said Delta Air Lines spokesman Carlos Santos, whose company recently acquired Northwest. “Fortunately it turned out to be a harmless article.” The flight landed in Nashville, and passengers got off the plane before the item was identified as a harmless ornament, Santos said. The plane, which had 75 passengers and five crew members, eventually arrived in Orlando about three hours later than scheduled. Santos could not say Friday what exactly led to the “abundance of caution.” He did not describe what the ornament looked like or whether it was returned to a passenger. The incident came one week after a man flying from Nigeria to Amsterdam, Netherlands, and then to the United States on a Northwest flight, tried to ignite an explosive as the plane prepared to land in Detroit. Santos could not say whether that incident influenced the decision of the pilot involved in Friday’s diverted flight. The diversion was made “to ensure passenger safety,” he said. http://www.spokesman.com/stories/2010/jan/02/flight-diverting-safety-threat- proves-strictly/ **************** Remains of Antarctica's first plane found The remains of the first aircraft ever taken to the Antarctic have been stumbled upon at Cape Denison by a team of Australian expeditioners. The team, who have been working on the conservation of huts used by Sir Douglas Mawson in the early 1900s, have spent three summers searching for the remains of his aircraft. The aircraft was built eight years after the first flight of the Wright brothers in 1911 and has been buried in ice since around 1975. Dr Tony Stewart says they brought down tens of thousands of dollars worth of equipment to look for the plane - but in the end it was a just chance find. "Magnatomicas, ground-penetrating radar metal detectors and all sorts of things to try and look for it, but in the end it was just a combination of a very low tide, good weather and a thin ice melt," he said. "Our carpenter was just taking a walk along the beach and just saw the metal in 10 centimetres of water, just right next to the ice." http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2010/01/02/2784239.htm?section=justin **************** Curt Lewis, P.E., CSP CURT LEWIS & ASSOCIATES, LLC