Posted on 07/05/2002 5:21:38 PM PDT by knighthawk
WASHINGTON (AP) - The government told owners and operators of private planes Friday to strengthen security because terrorists may try to use general aviation aircraft to attack in the United States.
"Terrorists who are no longer able to hijack commercial airliners because of increased security at commercial airports may turn to GA airports and aircraft to conduct operations," the alert said.
The Transportation Security Administration said it had "credible indications" that terrorists were planning attacks, but did not know the specific targets or the methods to be used.
The security agency asked private plane owners and operators to lock airplanes when they're not in use, check the identification of all crew members and passengers and make sure that there is no unidentified baggage or cargo on board.
In addition, they were urged to look for planes with unusual modifications, people with altered or phony identification and individuals standing idle near planes.
"If you observe persons, aircraft and operations that do not fit the customary pattern at your airport, you should immediately advise law enforcement authorities," the agency said.
More than 200,000 of the 215,000 planes flying in the United States are small private planes, known as general aviation aircraft, according to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association.
Association officials say the planes are too small to do much damage, but other airline experts disagree, saying they can carry plenty of explosives. There also is concern that terrorists will use private planes to scatter chemical or biological material.
Last month, Air Force jets scrambled twice to intercept two private planes that inadvertently entered the restricted air space around Camp David, the presidential retreat in Maryland where President Bush was staying. Jets also scrambled when another private plane inadvertently flew the restricted area around the Washington Monument, putting the aircraft as near as four miles to the White House.
In February, a 15-year-old boy stole an airplane from a flight school at the St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport in Florida and smashed it into the 28th floor of a Tampa office building, killing himself.
Following the Tampa crash, the Federal Aviation Administration suggested that separate ignition and door keys be required for private planes, that the planes be secured so they can't be flown without permission, that student pilots check in before getting keys and that employees and pilots be trained to look for suspicious activity.
The Bush administration is pathetic - you can't attack out of a cringe.
The public doesn't realize it but about 20% of the seat miles flown in this country are by GA aircraft and the air carriers would love to ground GA aircraft and won't help us one bit.
The public doesn't realize it but about 20% of the seat miles flown in this country are by GA aircraft and the air carriers would love to ground GA aircraft and won't help us one bit.
Sorry, Dale, but it's over. GA is effectively dead in the USA. The lawyers, Insurance Companies, and the gummint have KILLED it! I sold my T-210,(a dog) and my beautiful C-177-RG, 1963-Quebec, because I could not afford the cost of the insurance on the firewall-foreward overhaul.
It was fun, though. I got 480 hours in, and got scared-shitless many times, but I'm still a Pilot! Stay well armed and vigilant pal...................FRegards
This administration is such a joke.
BS. Paul Boyer has been preaching that flying is not a right, but a "privelege" granted by the government for over ten years. Did he not expect that the government would eventually take away that "privelege"?
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