Honolulu-Bound Flight Diverted After Crew Discovers Box Cutter

The Associated Press ^ | AP-ES-09-30-01 2214EDT | The Associated Press

[TheOtherOne]

Honolulu-Bound Flight Diverted After Crew Discovers Box Cutter
The Associated Press
Published: Sep 30, 2001

LOS ANGELES (AP) - An American Airlines pilot made an unscheduled landing Sunday after crew members found a box cutter left on the plane by a catering employee.

Flight attendants found the box cutter in a food cart about 90 minutes after the plane departed from Dallas, said American Airlines spokesman John Hotard.

The captain decided to land the Honolulu-bound plane, carrying 220 people, in Los Angeles so every passenger could be screened again. About 3 1/4 hours later, the plane resumed its trip to Hawaii, said airport spokeswoman Nancy Castles.

The box cutter was imprinted with the name of the airline's caterer, Sky Chef. Airline officials called the company, and an employee said he had inadvertently left the knife on the cart.

"There's no big deal here," Hotard said. "It's just a guy who forgot his box cutter."

The terrorists who hijacked airplanes Sept. 11 apparently used box cutters and other small blades in their carryon baggage to take control of the jets.

AP-ES-09-30-01 2214EDT

[SAS-MS]

a pair of tweezers were taken as well as a set of nail clippers on a flight from CT to KY

[Hank Rearden]

At a conference I attended last weekend, a woman from CT said they took a 3" pair of plastic scissors (little kid type) away from her purse. And they took from the elderly woman behind her a hand mirror, with nicely engraved handle, that she'd been carrying for decades.

And they threw them away. No recourse, no discussion. The old lady was in tears.

Yep, this'll reassure and attract new customers to the airlines. Morons.

-------------
"No big deal." Just paranoia costing a lot of people 3-1/4 hours of their lives that they'll never get back, because bureaucrats can't think to save their asses.

To hell with this attitude. Airlines need to regain some common sense before they die, and terrorists need to be killed ASAP. Period. We're Americans, dammit; this crap must stop. I have no plans to fly, and will make none, until it does.

[Mulder]

Lets not forget the everpresent fear of lawsuits by the criminal or his family that sues if they survive

Exactly.

In most states, there is a "duty to retreat" doctrine that applies to the use of force anywhere outside of your house. Failure to adhere to this could lead to criminal prosecution and or civil prosecution. This leads to a mindset of passisivity.

[TexRef]

All your box cutters are belong to us!

Somebody set us up the box!

[skr]

Perhaps one of the new safety instructions the flight attendants should give is that all passengers are required to fire their flotation devices at the hijacker. No one would have to get too close to that box cutter and everyone with a seat cushion can participate. Not to mention that seat cushions would make a decent shield for a box cutter when closing in on the guy.

One thing though, everyone talks about the box cutters and leaves out the alleged bomb that one terrorist had. That changes the parameters to some extent, if the passengers aren't aware of any building-crashing schemes. One would have to be fairly certain that the hijacker doesn't just want to land at a different locale. One could kill an entire plane-load of people if the motive is misjudged.

[Lazamataz]

I'd say we are about 20 miles into Overreaction City.

[TERMINATTOR]

If anyone paid attention to the Constitution or Bill Of Rights, over half the people on that flight would have been armed, and laughed at the boxcutter.

"A well-regulated Militia being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms shall not be infringed." - Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution

Thank you for flying Liberty Airlines.
Have a safe flight!

[Snuffington]

Terrorism in not an excuse for idiocy.

[Mulder]

Perhaps one of the new safety instructions the flight attendants should give is that all passengers are required to fire their flotation devices at the hijacker. No one would have to get too close to that box cutter and everyone with a seat cushion can participate.

LOL.

A simpler solution is to have the pilot, or armed passengers fire two rounds to the chest of the terrorist.

Hell, that wouldn't even interrupt the in-flight movie, if done properly.

[Mulder]

I'd say we are about 20 miles into Overreaction City.

Just wait until they make it a federal crime to even joke about having a box cutter or bringing one on board.

[World'sGoneInsane]

This is absolute lunacy. Has everyone gone completely insane???????

Well, no... After contemplating that thought for a very long time, I have finally concluded that it only just seems that way some days ;)

[cinFLA]

"There's no big deal here," Hotard said. "It's just a guy who forgot his box cutter."

I thought box cutters were banned at airports! Seriously, I bet the terrorists knew of the widespread use of boxcutters by these workers.

[PeoplesRepublicOfWashington]

You know that the answer to you question is "yes." A majority of this nation is populated by weenies. What other type of populace would have elected The Toon twice, let alone tolerated absolutely worthless, in fact harmful, "security" questioning at airports during most of his administration?

[The Real Deal]

A well sharpened pencil also makes a good weapon. You can go for the heart.

[farmer18th]

If we keep on like this, the terrorists have WON

Amen. We're becoming a nation of little old women..

[Tench_Coxe]

I never thought to see the day when every stockboy across the United States was to become a potential terrorist.

[My back yard]

Why the hell is everybody having a bleeping hissy-fit over a damn box cutter?

Litigation. If something did happen after that, and someone had phoned their spouse that a box cutter was found but nothing was done about it??? And even if nothing happened afterwards, anyone who saw the boxcutter would be on Geraldo Rivera and Larry King telling of it, and how the airlines 'DID NOTHING ABOUT IT' so they had to worry all through the flight and now they need counseling. I agree it is insane. But it is the hyper-litigious society in which we are living.

[PatrioticAmerican]

A flight crew diverted a flight after the they discoverd their shadows. Pictures at 11:00, if they aren't too scary.

[NotJustAnotherPrettyFace]

I also if she would please call the FBI and tell them this... just in case they don't already know.

Good for you - right on! Please call her back to make sure she does indeed make contact with the FBI! If she doesn't, make the contact yourself to let them know what she told you.

[PatrioticAmerican]

"The United States is at war."

Really? When did we declare war? I must have missed that.

BTW, we are hunting terrorists until further notice; we are not at war.