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I am the sister of the man who is being referred to as the pilot of this missing 727 from Angola. First of all, I want to clarify a few postings made below. We are NOT related to Jose Padilla and my brother Ben has lived in South Florida for over 20 years. Any inference made that he just happened to be there when the 9/11 terrorists were training is just plain ignorance and lack of knowing the facts surrounding his life. Also, Padilla is a common hispanic surname like Smith is to caucasians. My brother IS a patriot and our family knows that he was repossessing the aircraft as instructed by his employer. He has fallen victim to and has been kidnapped by either a terrorist or criminal organization. His employer also has faith in him and his integrity and character. He would not steal anything and on the contrary constantly tried to save his employer money by renogiating operational maintenance contracts on this aircraft and the fees owed to the airport. He is a generous man, trying to make a living in a dangerous country. He's not unlike any one of you and our family is devastated as the possibility we may never see him again. He was a single father during the 70s and 80s and raised two children by himself. His nomadic nature I referred to on GMA is the fact that his children are now adults and he loves to travel and fly and has no reason to maintain a home here any longer. He is very adventurous and loves life. He began his career as a millwright, and then became an A/P (aircraft mechanic) and then obtained his pilot's license. Nothing in his character would even remotely indicate he has 'switched' alliances, particularly after his strong feelings about the 9/11 incidents. As long as he had one breath in his body, he would NOT allow Americans to be harmed with an aircraft.

Hi BPK, I hope that your brother will be found in good health. Sorry,if anything was said to offend you and/or the rest of the members of your family. I hope that you can understand the concern of the individuals that are aware of this situation. Has the other mechanic and his wife been located. I myself and I'm sure lots of others try to stay abreast of this situation. It is a good thing that you step forward here on FR to inform us of the circumstances surrounding the matter. Welcome aboard.