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PSA 1771

Dec. 7, 1987, is a black day in the annals of the U.S. airline industry and one that has had severe repercussions for airline pilots and the rest of the aviation industry. On that day, David A. Burke, a former airline customer service agent who was fired from his position the previous month for larceny, boarded PSA Flight 1771 armed with a .44-caliber revolver. The FBI has never issued a public report on its investigation into the downing of Flight 1771. However, reports at the time said that Burke boarded the flight intending to murder his former manager, who was also on the airplane. Reliable news reports and other sources said that during the flight from Los Angeles to San Francisco, Burke murdered his former employer and subsequently gained access to the flight deck and fired shots, presumably killing or severely wounding the flight crew. The aircraft, a BAe 146, crashed near San Luis Obispo, Calif., killing all 43 persons on board.

During the cleanup of the wreckage site, an identification badge belonging to Burke was found. Burke’s former employers’ representatives stated at the time that his badge had been retrieved when he was fired, but they also conceded that it was possible for an employee to have more than one badge. "I learned from reliable sources after the tragedy that Burke actually possessed several identification badges at the time that he boarded Flight 1771," notes Capt. Lloyd Anderson (Eastern, Ret.), former chairman and long-time member of ALPA’s Flight Security Committee. "Burke apparently gained access to the aircraft while armed, on the basis of an invalid ID and personal recognition by the screeners," Capt. Anderson explains.

"Burke apparently gained access to the aircraft while armed, on the basis of an invalid ID and personal recognition by the screeners," Capt. Anderson explains.
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I was wrong about how he got on the plane, I see. Memory fails me, I guess.

Thank you buccaneer81.