Officials say al-Qaida operatives may be fully trained airline pilots

MSNBC.com ^ | 12/22/03 | NBC

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

Authorities raised the terrorist threat assessment over the weekend after new intelligence indicated that operatives of Osama bin Laden’s al-Qaida terror network, possibly trained and licensed to fly passenger jets, may now be pilots for some foreign airlines, ideally positioning them to carry out suicide attacks, U.S. officials told NBC News on Monday.

Reinforced cockpit doors intended to thwart hijackers after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks would now protect any terrorist pilot at the controls, the officials said on condition of anonymity.

Authorities would not describe the terror threats in detail publicly, but the U.S. officials told NBC’s Jim Miklaszewski that the threat alert would remain at “orange,” or high, through the end of January, which they said was an indication of its seriousness.

[nicko]

ref. Black Sunday, 1977 film with Robert Shaw, Bruce Dern...you're right about Indiana- I too grew up there...

[MJemison]

...lock and load..

Frightening clues. This AM on FOX I watched the Evan Kohlmann (terrorism analyst at the Investigative Project in DC) interview. Kohlmann is always good, but this morning he looked exhausted and was deadly serious. His message is that these terrorists are unbelieveably committed, and will do anything. I wish I could remember everything he said; he scared the s**t out of me.

[archy]

Hey, they could even be federal employees! Or elected officials!

Can't trust any of 'em until they've been searched and probed!

-archy-/-

[archy]

And wouldn't the game be WWIII?

We've won that one already.

This would be WWIV.

Not until the rest of the nations, or at least a sizable majority, join in. So far it's been us and a few, plus the Israelis, the Russians holding their own in Chechnya, and the Serbs fighting the Moslems in the Balkans.

[Bloody Sam Roberts]

...until they've been searched and probed!

Uh...huh-huh...huh-huh. He said 'probe'.

[antiRepublicrat]

Too bad we don't have these. They're quite comfortable even at 150mph.

[shaggy eel]

,,, is that a maglev - or similar?

[Semper Paratus]

"Don't forget that Egyptian pilot who deliberately took a whole planeload of people to their deaths on an Egypt Air flight a cuple of years ago.

Egypt tried to blow off the report and the official version was suicide. The co-pilot, according to the transcripts, disengaged the auto-pilot as soon as the captain left the cabing and then put the plane into steep dive that was terminal before the captain could crawl back in to stop it.

I worry about a similar scenario put it would require timing, a plan to include or take out the flight crew, and probably would not include more than one plane.

[antiRepublicrat]

,,, is that a maglev - or similar?

No, just electric or diesel-electric with wheels, but fast. Germany's had them since the '90s, but this is the latest generation. The older ones could only go high-speed on special high-speed tracks, but the tilt design lets it go faster on regular tracks. The greatest thing is that you get much better accomodations than you do in an airplane, without the stale air, and with a nice dinner car where you can sit down to a beer and bratwurst while you watch the scenery go by.

[shaggy eel]

without the stale air and with a nice dinner car where you can sit down to a beer and bratwurst while you watch the scenery go by.

,,, now you're talking!

[luvbach1]

Fully agree with your post #261

[angcat]

What is the rural target in the east?

[NewLand]

Please note I said Arab non-citizens...that is not ethnic cleansing...plenty of Arabs and Muslims will still be here, but they would only be those who were born here or became US citizens. Big difference.

FTR (for the record) I was totally aginst the Clinton-Clark-NATO actions in Kosovo and Bosnia, and obviously against the bombing of innocent civilians in Belgrade Yugoslavia.

I do agree that we do not yet have the stomach as a nation to either take these measures legally, or take matters into our own hands as civilians.

Maybe someday, but not today.

[Jim Noble]

What is the rural target in the east?

Hydroelectric power station at Niagara Falls?

[angcat]

Susquehanna Power Plant, Berwick PA, 10 miles from my house!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I drank all my emergency water tomorrow is a Wal-Mart run and now with my new daughter I have to stock up on formula! I'm freaking out!!!!!!!!!!! This thread is freaking me out!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Mr. Lucky]

The Union Pacific's E-units were also quite comfortable at high speeds. Not only that, they were privately financed and served a market demand.

[He Rides A White Horse]

Well, we do know where the Super Bowl will be, and so do they. We know what the television ratings will be for the Super Bowl, and so do they.

[Diddle E. Squat]

New England Patriot games in Foxboro(one this Sat. night) seem to fit the profile.

[ConservativeMan55]

Very interesting...

[He Rides A White Horse]

Al Michaels: "Tonight's spectacular shots will be brought to you by the "Baghdad Blimp".............. ....not necessarily, but you get the idea.

I know 'Black Sunday'............