Flashback: Air France Cancellations Tied to 1 Person (Christmas Eve 2003)

France today confirmed an ABCNEWS report that it was hunting for a man behind security fears that forced several flight cancellations and delays. The man is suspected of having links to al Qaeda and may have access to a concealable bomb.

U.S. law enforcement officials told ABCNEWS that if the suspect is who they think he is, he underwent terrorist training at one of Osama bin Laden's camps in Afghanistan.

The ongoing search for the man — who was traveling with a French passport — is one of the factors contributing to the continuing security jitters about trans-Atlantic flights, officials said.

French officials told ABCNEWS on Tuesday that the man is feared to have a small bomb whose components might get past airport security.

"I confirm that we are looking for someone. I cannot tell you anything more," French Justice Minister Dominique Perben told RMC radio today, confirming what ABCNEWS reported Tuesday.

The man had a ticket for Air France's Flight 68 from Paris to Los Angeles on Dec. 24, but the flight was canceled and the passenger never showed up at the airport, U.S. and French officials told ABCNEWS.

DECEMBER 24, 2003 : (NEWS OF US SECURITY CONCERNS WAS LEAKED, BLEW CHANCE TO TRAP TERRORISTS ON FLIGHTS BETWEEN FRANCE AND THE USA) - PARIS — The U.S. government had been hoping to snag some terrorists on flights between Paris and Los Angeles before the flights were canceled and news of security concerns was publicized, a U.S. official told The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.————— Official: U.S. Hoped To Trap Terrorists Before Cancellations Homeland Security Officials Frustrated News Of ‘Security Concerns’ Got Out - POSTED: 2:05 p.m. EST December 24, 2003 - UPDATED: 6:02 p.m. EST December 24, 2003
3,585 posted on 12/24/2003 4:39:33 PM PST by JustPiper

DECEMBER 26, 2003: (FRANCE : SEARCH UNDERWAY FOR PEOPLE WHO FAILED TO SHOW UP FOR THEIR SCHEDULED FLIGHTS TO LAX— See PARIS, LAX) U.S. investigators are searching for a small number of people who failed to show up at the Paris airport to board flights to Los Angeles that fell under close scrutiny in a possible terrorist plot, a U.S. official said Friday. One of those people was receiving pilot training, but was not yet certified, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Investigators remain interested in talking with those people to ease concerns some passengers aboard those flights might have intended to use them to launch terror attacks against the United States , the official said. —— blog http://www.desert-voice.net/terrorism.htm

DECEMBER 2003 last week : (AEROMEXICO FLIGHT 490 IS CANCELLED DUE TO TERROR THREAT; THERE IS ALSO SOME CONFUSION OVER ISSUE OF LANDING RIGHTS) ... a scheduled U.S.-bound flight from Mexico was canceled because of security concerns.
“The government of Mexico made the decision to cancel Aeromexico Flight 490 after the U.S. government shared threat information with the Mexican government,” Department of Homeland Security spokesman Brian Roehrkasse said.
Previous reports said the plane turned around in midair, but Roehrkasse and Mexican officials said it never took off. Roehrkasse denied that the U.S. government told Mexico it would refuse the plane landing rights.
However Agustin Gutierrez, Mexico’s presidential spokesman, said the flight was canceled after United States authorities said they would refuse to allow it to land. He also said Mexico did not receive convincing information for the cancellation. “The question is what threat?” Gutierrez said. “This question must be answered by Homeland Security. If we are going to have a good climate of cooperation, the least that we can hope for are reasons.”— “U.K. Flight to U.S. Canceled After British Airways Cancels Flight to D.C. a Day After U.S. Authorities Board Its Jet at Dulles Airport,” The Associated Press, January 1, 2004

Isn’t that pretty much how this round of terrorism began, with PanAm Flight 103 over Scotland, just days before Christmas, 1988? 270 killed, including many students returning after their semester abroad; the airline, previously a world leader, never recovered.

The perp spent 8 years in jail, released in Aug 2009 on ‘compassion’ grounds because he had only 3 months to live. 4 months later, as far as anyone knows, he’s alive and well.

The West will never learn.

DECEMBER 30, 2003 Tuesday : (VALDEZ, ALASKA : OIL TANKER TERMINAL IS CLOSED DUE TO TERROR THREAT) The threat of terrorism also prompted the closure Tuesday night of the oil tanker terminal in Valdez, Alaska. The terminal remained closed Thursday, Lt. Cmdr. Jeff Carter of the Coast Guard said.Tankers load Prudhoe Bay oil destined for the Lower 48 states at Valdez, the end of the 800-mile pipeline, which carries 17 percent of the nation’s domestic oil supply. ...[this week] security was strengthened in the Prince William Sound community after U.S. officials said al-Qaida operatives could target remote sites such as oil facilities in Alaska. Officials also said then they could not corroborate a report about an al-Qaida threat against the Valdez oil terminal.— “U.K. Flight to U.S. Canceled After British Airways Cancels Flight to D.C. a Day After U.S. Authorities Board Its Jet at Dulles Airport,” The Associated Press, January 1, 2004

DECEMBER 31, 2003 Wednesday : (DULLES AIRPORT : BRITISH AIRWAYS JET IS BOARDED - FLIGHT #?- WOMAN IS QUESTIONED) U.S. authorities were acting on intelligence information and not just suspicious passenger names when they boarded a British Airways jet on New Year’s Eve at nearby Dulles International Airport, a national security official [later ] said [on] Thursday. ...As for the New Year’s Eve flight, a U.S. official said no evidence of terrorism was found and the major consequence appeared to be inconvenience, with the 247 passengers waiting more than 3 1/2 hours before getting off the plane while some of them were questioned.”We had concerns with individuals on the flight, but threat reporting information led us to make the decision to have the flight escorted,” the national security official said, speaking only on condition of anonymity. “It was fact-related,” the official said, and not just connected to the passenger list the United States now receives from airlines flying to the United States.
The official added the long delay at Dulles was caused in part by weapons screening of passengers, and partly because authorities waited for some law enforcement specialists to arrive.
Transportation Security Administration spokeswoman Jennifer Marty said officials began departing from the plane about 10:30 p.m., long after the 7:06 p.m. landing.The plane was kept several hundred feet from the terminal during the questioning.
Passenger David Litwick told WJLA-TV in Washington that he and his wife were not questioned, but at least one other passenger was. Litwick said four FBI agents spoke to a woman who appeared to be from the Middle East, repeatedly asking her why she was not traveling with her husband. — “U.K. Flight to U.S. Canceled After British Airways Cancels Flight to D.C. a Day After U.S. Authorities Board Its Jet at Dulles Airport,” The Associated Press, January 1, 2004

JANUARY 1, 2004 Thursday PM : (SOMEWHERE OVER THE PACIFIC OCEAN : AIRLINE SECURITY : PASSENGER ON NORTHWEST AIRLINES FLIGHT FROM DETROIT TO HAWAII HAS TO BE RESTRAINED) In an incident over the Pacific on Thursday night, a passenger on a Northwest Airlines flight from Detroit to Honolulu had to be restrained after he approached the cockpit, airline officials said. The man was escorted to the back of the plane by two off-duty pilots who happened to be on board and was arrested when the plane landed. Thomas Becher, a spokesman for Northwest, said he could not say whether the incident was related to terrorism... Developing..- “Man Restrained After Approaching Cockpit,”The Drudge Report, Posted on 01/01/2004 8:46:00 PM PST by RWR8189

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