Airline guy said all people had to have visas for china.
There could be an issue other than terrorism for the need for fake papers.
Dont know how common it is for people traveling to China to do so on fake papers.
They were just stopping in China, supposedly, on their way to European destinations. You generally don’t need entry documents for a country if you’re just going to be in a transfer lounge and never leave it and actually enter that country. I’m sure the terrorists (if that’s what they were) knew this.
not sure. I’ve also heard that if China was just a connect point - the traveler going thru to other destinations with a connecting flight (so not leaving the airport) - a Chinese visa was not required. I wonder about the transponder being turned off - an explosion wouldn’t do it; it would seem to be an intentional act.