Posted on 02/12/2003 7:16:29 PM PST by TLBSHOW
Mideast men with 'razors' yanked off American jet
9/11-like scare rattles crew on flight bound for Los Angeles from Dulles
WASHINGTON – In a Sept. 11 flashback, two Middle Eastern men were removed from an American Airlines flight here to Los Angeles after "razors" and thousands of dollars in cash were found in one of their carry-on bags, the airline confirmed today.
The incident occurred Saturday at Washington Dulles International Airport, from where Middle Eastern men with box cutters in 2001 hijacked an American flight to Los Angeles, took control of the plane and slammed it into the Pentagon.
The bag containing what one source claims were "straight razors" and also a "utility knife" got past the Transportation Security Administration's checkpoint at Dulles. Straight razors and sharp-bladed knives of any length are banned items.
But later at the gate, one of the men was pulled from the line in a random security check. A search of his bag turned up the razors and nearly $10,000 in cash.
TSA confiscated the razors, which American Airlines says were permitted safety razors, but let both men board Flight 144 to Los Angeles International Airport.
However, the flight crew, including the pilots, refused to take off until the men were removed. The flight was delayed about an hour before security officers came on board and escorted the men off the plane.
"A flight attendant aboard the flight raised questions about the two men aboard the flight who had passed two TSA screenings," said John Hotard, an American spokesman in Dallas. "They were asked to deplane, which they did, rescreened and placed aboard another flight to LAX."
TSA spokeswoman Chris Rhatigan said the agency had no immediate comment.
The two passengers had Virginia IDs, but were not U.S. citizens. A source familiar with the incident told WorldNetDaily that the men claimed to be Iranian nationals, but were not carrying passports.
The source also said both men were searched at the gate, the other at the insistence of the airline, and "10 straight razors," as well as a "utility knife or box cutter," were found along with the wad of cash in one of their bags.
"They said they were hair dressers and the items were used in their work," he said.
"Why didn't the X-ray devices detect those items before the men got to the boarding area?" he asked. "Why did it take more than an hour for the airport to respond to the flight crew's request to deplane the two?"
Hotard insisted no straight razors or utility knives were found in the searches at the gate.
"There was a package of razor blade cartridges," he told WorldNetDaily.
TSA allows passengers to take razor cartridges in carry-on bags.
Until they allow the pilots to be armed, we'll see more of this.
I agree. Unfortunately, it appears as American Airlines doesn't put the same value on such judgment calls. I suspect the next crew had no choice in the matter other than to walk off the flight themselves and risk reprisal. The rest of the passengers, of course, weren't even given that chance.
Is it getting to the point where we as passengers should ask before embarking if any passenger aboard the flight had been refused passage on a previous flight?
Why is the enemy still here?
So the boxcutter was for a REALLY close neck shave...
I'm shocked, shocked!! Just the other day, a girl from Taiwan, exchange student, walked right past TSA through an empty gate. By the time these clowns got after her, her plane had left the ground. But of course, that didn't stop them from locking down everything and inconveniencing all the other travelers who were waiting for their flights. That girl could just as easily have been a guy named Abdullah with a shoe full of explosives. I have zero confidence in the airlines, airports and TSA to keep me safe on a flight.
That happens with amounts less than 10,000. Sometimes less than $100. Basically, any amount of cash can be seized.
Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhh........lots o' people around here have a strong distaste for logical thinking of any kind.
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