Report: Al Qaeda Plans to Bomb London Flights

FOX News ^ | 1/7/04

[saquin]

Police in England and Europe are seeking Al Qaeda terrorists planning to bomb trans-Atlantic jets departing Paris and London, security sources said yesterday.

Two Al Qaeda terrorists with American passports and non-Arab physical appearances are believed to be planning assaults on trans-Atlantic flights from London, a U.S. official told The Post.

[Arkinsaw]

Al-Qaeda know that they have been ratted out now. I doubt they will try anything until they think their house is back in order. Hopefully this will cause some finger pointing, suspicion, and in-fighting amongst their ranks.

[finnman69]

http://www.homelandsecurityus.com

Air travelers are advised to remain vigilant even after boarding an aircraft and urged to notify flight personnel of unusual interaction between seemingly unrelated passengers.

7 January 2004-- Information obtained exclusively by the Northeast Intelligence Network provided additional insight into the terrorists' operational plans involving at least one and perhaps more of the recently grounded flights. According to these sources, the following method of operation is "continuing" and will likely result in additional international flights being grounded.

It is already well known that women are being used as "mules" to smuggle explosive material onto airplanes. The other undisclosed aspect of these plans, according to information confirmed by intelligence officials, is that each woman is "accompanied" by 1-2 other people onto a targeted aircraft. The other passengers do not appear to have any connection to the female passenger whatsoever and even carry passports from other countries. These covert associates carry other electronic items that alone, appear harmless (such as a personal CD player, for example) but are actually intended to be used as components for the explosive device. These items are checked and pass through security as they are operational.

Once aboard the aircraft, there is "quiet" interaction between operatives to pass all of the necessary bomb-making components to the delegated operative who assembles the device in the bathroom of the aircraft. At that point, they have "successfully" breached the intense security and have a workable and deadly explosive device that has been assembled at 30,000 feet.

Open source documentation of recent aircraft incidents offering "bits and pieces" of this plan are not making any reference or connection to the above scenario. Research conducted by by Jill St. Claire cite the following news items that "hint" but do not fully disclose the extent of the operation:

US Jets Escort Plane : At that point the decision was taken to escort the flight into the airport amid fears that if the woman were a terrorist she may have an accomplice.

Jet Lands Safely At Kentucky Airport

More Terror Alerts Hit British Airways: British Transport Secretary Alistair Darling acknowledged only that the government had “specific information” which led it to ask British Airways to cancel the flights.

[finnman69]

Now French authorities are kicking themselves for canceling the flight too soon - and they're afraid that terrorists plan to detonate his bomb on another flight from elsewhere in Europe, the report said.

Worthless Frogs

[luvbach1]

Curses, foiled again!!!

[luvbach1]

I never thought of the terrorists as smart. Maybe they are not smart, but smarter than I had thought in their efforts to circumvent security. If only they used such zeal and ingenuity to bring their backward societies into the 21st century instead of plotting the death of civilians.

[Eva]

I hate to admit this, but I don't think that the airport security works very well. They pick up a necklace, but they let that woman with the wired coat through, and it never picks up the steel rod in my husbands leg, that is almost an inch in diameter and over a foot long.

[Prodigal Son]

non-Arab physical appearances

I'm certainly glad they narrowed it down.

[PrivateIdaho]

Bookmarked... so I can show this to my boss when he will likely ask me to fly to London at the end of the month.

[eno_]

I never thought of the terrorists as smart. Maybe they are not smart, but smarter than I had thought in their efforts to circumvent security. If only they used such zeal and ingenuity to bring their backward societies into the 21st century instead of plotting the death of civilians.

A few years ago an AQ terrorist killed a Japanese passenger on a trans-Pacific flight with a bomb assembled in flight. They have been refining these kinds of attacks since long before 9/11. I am of the opinion that AA587 was a successful bombing.

[eno_]

Airport security is a joke to make stupid people feel comfortable. Real terrorism is foiled by communications intercepts, infirtrators, and spies, and it is stopped by finding and assasinating terrorists, not by an army of TSA nosepicks.

[optik_b]

The paranoia is getting ridiculous. Did you guys hear about the woman who was wearing a motorcycle jacket that plugs into her bike and she had the wires that are on the jacket. The plane was escorted by military aircraft because someone thought this must be a bomb.

http://www.wcpo.com/news/2004/local/01/06/flight43.html

[mewzilla]

Reportedly the French have come close to bagging the guy twice in the last couple of weeks, only to have him slip away.

Bet they really hate it when that happens....

[LPStar]

Yes, but that was a Saudi woman on a Jordanian passport. Wouldn't you be suspicious?

[optik_b]

"Saudi woman on a Jordanian passport"

Good point.