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Terror plot to attack US with BA jets
The Sunday Times (UK) ^ | 1/04/03 | Davis Leppard

Posted on 01/03/2004 4:35:03 PM PST by saquin

An Al-Qaeda suicide plot to hijack several passenger jets simultaneously — including a British Airways flight — and crash them into high-profile American targets has been uncovered by the security services.

The American capital and nuclear power stations on the country’s East Coast are said to have been among the terrorists’ potential targets.

The September 11-style plot explains the grounding of 10 US-bound flights across the world over the seasonal break.

According to a senior intelligence source, an informant tipped off authorities the weekend before Christmas. He claimed that Islamic extremists intended to hijack flights operated by BA, Air France and AeroMexico, the Mexican national carrier.

The informant said that as well as targeting Washington, New York and Los Angeles, the terrorists were planning to launch a strike on an oil terminal in Alaska. A CIA assessment of his information subsequently identified nuclear plants on the eastern coast of America as possible targets.

Detailed security checks were conducted on all US-bound flights operated by the three carriers after the intelligence emerged about the alleged plot. All passenger lists were cross-checked against an FBI watchlist of known terrorist suspects.

As a result, 10 US-bound flights were grounded: two BA flights to Washington, two AeroMexico flights from Mexico City to LA and six Air France flights from Paris to LA. At least three other flights were escorted into American airports by F-16 fighter jets and one Mexican airliner was even forced to turn back in mid-air.

BA also grounded two flights to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, which were due to fly on New Year’s Eve and yesterday afternoon. It is understood that these cancellations related to separate intelligence.

Although flight 223, BA’s service to Washington, was cleared by British officials for take-off yesterday afternoon after being cancelled for two days running, the United States was still not satisfied, leaving it delayed on the runway for 3½ hours while the 225 passengers were subjected to additional questioning on board.

The aircraft eventually took off at 6.30pm and was due to arrive at Washington Dulles airport at 2.10am today.

Intelligence sources yesterday confirmed that the cancellation of the US-bound services was triggered by information provided by an informant “outside the US”. The warning was of an imminent attack on American soil with Washington, Los Angeles and New York identified as targets.

It is thought that another target was the Alaskan port of Valdez, the terminal for an 800-mile pipeline which carries 17% of America’s domestic oil supply. The informant also named specific routes and flight numbers, including BA223, as part of the hijack plot. It is understood that intercepts of communications between known terrorist suspects also suggested the significant risk of an attack.

On the same weekend that the intelligence was received from the informant, Tom Ridge, the US homeland security secretary, raised the security threat for US citizens to “code orange”, the second highest level. He said that the country faced the risk of a terror strike which “could either rival or exceed” September 11.

All passenger lists on the jets believed to be potential targets were checked. Valdez was put on high alert and the transfer of oil to tankers was suspended. Some passengers listed on Air France flights to LA appeared to match suspects on the terror watchlist and six flights were cancelled on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. One passenger who had a similar name to a Tunisian terrorist turned out to be a five-year-old child.

French security officials insisted that the decision to ground the planes was taken on the basis of “significant intelligence”. One of the passengers who failed to turn up was a trained pilot from the Middle East who has since disappeared and cannot be traced, according to US intelligence sources.

Checks on the British passenger lists revealed other apparent matches with names on the terror watchlist, but none is thought to have been confirmed.

Spurious matches are not uncommon because of the similarity of many Arabic names. As well as checks on specific aircraft, new security measures were implemented. The British government said last Sunday that armed air marshals would be deployed on US-bound flights where needed.

David Blunkett, the home secretary, wants to hold an urgent meeting of the British and American “contact group”, which contains security and intelligence officials, police and politicians from the two countries.

There are signs of tension between London and Washington over the extent to which Britain follows every command from the United States after terror alerts. “The notion that the US can bounce the rest of us into cancelling flights all the time needs to be addressed,” said one British minister.

Yesterday passengers checking in for BA flight 223 to Washington Dulles airport said that they were not deterred by the security alert surrounding the service.

Ralph Hodgson, 58, a businessman from Newcastle, said: “I’ve absolutely no worries at all about getting on this flight. I think if anything’s going to happen, if your number’s called, then your number’s going to be called.”

In a separate security alert BA’s flight to Riyadh was cancelled for the second time in four days after intelligence reports relating to a potential surface-to-air missile attack on a British carrier.

This weekend government officials were believed to be advising the Saudi authorities on measures to improve ground security at Riyadh airport.


TOPICS: Front Page News; News/Current Events; United Kingdom; War on Terror
KEYWORDS: airlinesecurity; ba; ba223; iad; lax; lhr; oil; oilterminals; terrorism; valdez
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To: DannyTN
I figure they had information that associated a certain name with a certain skill set, much as it's esay to look up my education and work history. The person was then a no-show for the flight, and doesn't answer at his last known address/phone etc. That is pretty strange, for the average Joe.

What's scary is that all this person needs to do is assume a false identity, and try again in maybe a year or two.

61 posted on 01/03/2004 6:15:36 PM PST by Cboldt
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To: Jodi
I'm jealous...A post of mine that alluded to that quite apt and very correct word to describe the shebeast was deleted by the moderator after some spoilsport reported the reference some weeks ago on another thread. Yeesh, I veiled it just as you did. ;) It was my very first -- and so far only -- comment removal, but it remains extremely difficult to restrain myself from using such language when talking about the she- and he-beast!
62 posted on 01/03/2004 6:18:11 PM PST by Donna Lee Nardo
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To: americanbychoice
Oh drat! Oh well, carpal tunnel made me give up knitting 30 years ago. I have made 2 plane trips in the last 2 months, both times my pepper spray got past the screeners. I could squirt the terrorists with pepper spray. That would get their attention. ;9}
63 posted on 01/03/2004 6:18:34 PM PST by Ditter
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To: LuigiBasco
Roger that. Looks like he has been zotted anyway.
64 posted on 01/03/2004 6:24:05 PM PST by Mad_Tom_Rackham ("...the right of THE PEOPLE to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.")
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To: americanbychoice
sorry, knitting needles are not allowed on an airplane. You have to think about something else? :-)

American women of all ages are armed; purses,cell phones, a broken cd, cologne, baby bottles, kids toys, long fingernails, pencils, shoes, can cokes, canes, eyes glasses, hair spray, teeth...

65 posted on 01/03/2004 6:24:23 PM PST by CindyDawg
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To: Dark Wing
ping
66 posted on 01/03/2004 6:29:20 PM PST by Thud
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To: CindyDawg
hormones
67 posted on 01/03/2004 6:34:19 PM PST by myprecious
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To: Mad_Tom_Rackham
I wonder if they think he got away to London and would've been on one of the British Airways flights to Dulles. Flight 223 detained at Dulles on New Year's Eve. From the thread entitled British Airways Flight Detained at Dulles Airport, Passengers Being Quizzed by Security:
WJLA reporting, they were looking for 7-8 suspects. They're interviewing two passengers now, they were told there would be a delay, waited 1 1/2 hours for checks to start, then another 1 1/2 hours before these 2 (husband and wife) were cleared. Questioned middle easterner woman, FBI questioned her, where's your husband? No one knows why flight detained. One BA source said they were looking for 7-8 suspects. That's all.
298 posted on 12/31/2003 11:25:18 PM EST by angkor
WTOP Live Report at 12:05 am EST
Did not question US Passport holders, just kept them on the plane. Questioned foreign passport holders.
Looking for 7-8 people
Still calling it a "routine rescreen of passengers"
Four agents stopped one particular woman - asked why her husband was not on board that flight
493 posted on 01/01/2004 12:08:19 AM EST by bcoffey
68 posted on 01/03/2004 6:39:08 PM PST by arasina
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To: myprecious
Have you noticed that in America that estrogen seems to be on the rise and testosterone declining?
69 posted on 01/03/2004 6:41:53 PM PST by CindyDawg
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To: saquin
I wonder what they have done about food service handlers having access to the planes without always going through security.
70 posted on 01/03/2004 6:41:54 PM PST by doug from upland (Don't wait until it is too late to stop Hillary -- do something today!)
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To: CindyDawg
No. I live in rural Texas where both are still allowed. LOL!
71 posted on 01/03/2004 6:45:28 PM PST by myprecious
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To: Donna Lee Nardo
that sucks. everyone else calls her PIAPS, i say **nt from Chappaqua is more apropo.
72 posted on 01/03/2004 6:46:32 PM PST by Jodi (I (heart) FreeRepublic!)
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To: myprecious
Yeah. Yall aren't extinct yet. I'm married to one and raised 3 more. Sometimes the level would get so high I would have to get out of the house awhile :')
73 posted on 01/03/2004 6:49:42 PM PST by CindyDawg
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To: CindyDawg
ummm, CindyDawg, I am equipped with estrogen. That is why I considered it to be a dangerous weapon. ;^)
74 posted on 01/03/2004 7:03:21 PM PST by myprecious
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To: myprecious
OHHHHHHHHHHHH (red faced)
75 posted on 01/03/2004 7:08:10 PM PST by CindyDawg
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To: saquin
The informant said that as well as targeting Washington, New York and Los Angeles, the terrorists were planning to launch a strike on an oil terminal in Alaska.

That's one way to get the ecofreaks on their side. .....not a bad recruiting scheme.

76 posted on 01/03/2004 7:11:09 PM PST by Mr. Mojo
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To: Capt. Tom
I am surprised that with all the many millions of dollars at the terrorists disposal that they haven't just bought a plane, loaded it with whatever they want, and just fly it into a target

We still don't know what happened with that 727 that disappeared in Africa last year
77 posted on 01/03/2004 7:15:13 PM PST by Damagro
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To: arasina
I wonder if they think he got away to London and would've been on one of the British Airways flights to Dulles.

Hard to say. But if this were a hijacking plan, the entire team would have to re-deploy. Might be difficult to do, unless they had backup plans in the works. IMO, seems there may have been (and may be) a number of plans in process, including both hijackings and suicide bombings. With good intel and effort, we may be tripping them up pretty well -- Thank God.

78 posted on 01/03/2004 7:23:42 PM PST by Mad_Tom_Rackham ("...the right of THE PEOPLE to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.")
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To: Jodi
You perfected the phrase by adding "from Chappaqua! A very nice alliteration.
79 posted on 01/03/2004 7:27:01 PM PST by Donna Lee Nardo
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To: CindyDawg
Lol CD, sounds like you've defended yourself before. Thumbs up
80 posted on 01/03/2004 7:28:21 PM PST by Damagro
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