Pilot held over air ''joke''

sorry blackmac... there's far too much sugar in these crullers these days!!

i couldn't resist... when dr. scholl's comes up with the cure for "foot in mouth" disease, i'll be the second in line!! (right behind shoeless joe from 'cross da pon')
 
I think American security at airports has gone insane.
Those "people" do not apply ANY level of common sence to thier jobs.
As a result, someone that is REALLY a threat is probably more likely to get passed them.

They are trained to "fight the front line battle" and told it is all up to them to question EVERYTHING.
As far as I am concerned, they are nothing more then poorly educated rent a cops on power trips.

Sorry about the rant, I realize this is an ignorant blanket statement, but I have missed several business flights due to rediculous customs delays and have even been held back for questioning due to the nature of my job.
It is tiring.
 
schteevie... if you're suggesting the blame for this colossal clusterfog should be shouldered by the poor sobs working a 12 hour shift at $8/hr (who are constantly being reminded that they'll be tested on a regular basis as well as being subjected to the ongoing abuse from weary travellers)... as opposed to the (hopefully) semi-professional airline pilot who may have simply had a very large brain fart... i'm sorry, but i'll side with the guy/gal that's doin' their job per their directions... if the sop for air france now includes a pre-boarding declaration from their aircrew of (haha/heehee) "i've got a bomb in my shoe" (just kidding, folks)... then the ac boys & girls just might pick up some business this year!

if an individual announced the same thing just ahead of you in line at pearson, how would you expect security to respond???
 
Sunday, August 10, 2003 Posted: 1:02 PM EDT (1702 GMT)
[color=" black FONTFAMILY Times New Roman msobidifontsize 90pt"] [/color]
[SIZE= 12pt]Pilot arraigned for alleged shoe-bomb comment[/SIZE]
[color=" black FONTFAMILY Times New Roman msobidifontsize 105pt"] [/color]
[color=" black FONTFAMILY Times New Roman msobidifontsize 105pt"]NEW YORK (AP) --[/color][color=" black FONTFAMILY Times New Roman msobidifontsize 90pt"] [/color][color=" black FONTFAMILY Times New Roman msobidifontsize 105pt"]An Air France pilot was arraigned on felony charges Sunday after allegedly telling a security screener he had a bomb in his shoe.[/color][color=" black FONTFAMILY Times New Roman msobidifontsize 90pt"] [/color]
[color=" black FONTFAMILY Times New Roman msobidifontsize 90pt"] [/color]
[color=" black FONTFAMILY Times New Roman msobidifontsize 90pt"]No explosives were found on the pilot or the plane, but the New York-to-Paris flight he was scheduled for as a co-pilot was canceled. [/color]
[color=" black FONTFAMILY Times New Roman msobidifontsize 90pt"] [/color]
[color=" black FONTFAMILY Times New Roman msobidifontsize 90pt"]Philippe Rivere, 50, was charged with two counts of falsely reporting an incident. He could face a seven-year prison term if convicted on the first-degree count, said Patrick Clark, a spokesman for the Queens district attorney. [/color]

Full story:
[url="http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/08/10/pilot.arrested.ap/index.html"]http://www.cnn.com/2003/LAW/08/10/pilot.ar...d.ap/index.html[/URL]







Sunday, 10 August, 2003, 20:32 GMT 21:32 UK
Pilot on bail over air incident
… … …
He is charged with two counts of falsely reporting an incident and faces up to 11 years in prison.
… … …


The flight eventually returned to Paris Charles de Gaulle airport on Saturday after a new co-pilot flew in from Paris.

The airline, who has apologized to passengers for the inconvenience caused, said the pilot had been arrested following "misinterpreted remarks".
But US officials describe the pilot's remarks as inappropriate.

"It's not very often that you find a co-pilot making such inappropriate comments," Transportation Security Administration (TSA) spokeswoman Lauren Stover.

"We have zero tolerance for those kinds of comments."[SIZE= 10pt] [/SIZE]

… … …


"Terrorists are still trying to perfect a shoe bomb, and here is an employee of the aviation industry - the very people we are trying to protect and who we are counting on to be alert in security matters - who is making the threat," Ms Stover said.

… … …

Full story:
[url="http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3138219.stm"]http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/3138219.stm[/URL]
 
schteevie

It seems that you don't know that playing or joking with very serious matters at a time like this is not only a stupid action but also a crime, as you can well see by the above post. And the fact that the "joke" came from a pilot, be it co-pilot or pilot in command, just made things worse and a lot more difficult to accept because they are supposed to be responsible guys... aren't they ?

You should read the comments of US offical Lauren Stover in the link above, and the news about the arrest of Richard Reid, the real "shoe bomber" and what his answer was when questioned about what he was doing... His answer was "I am trying to light up this thing. I have a bomb in my shoes". The stewardess jumped on him and cried for help and everybody subdued the would be bomber, preventing the explosion.

As far as I am concerned, if the story is proved true, the guy should get a few years locked up for what he did and also to send a strong message to other short [SIZE= 12pt]sighted[/SIZE] and funny guys who think that security nowadays is something anyone can "joke" with.

Oh BTW and the security officer that nailed him should start getting $10/hr (at least)...
 
yes, I know it is illegal to joke about bombs. points taken. my comments were harsh
I am just continuosly frustrated with the way U.S. security/customs is handled...
 
Well aparently there was some kafuffle at CYYT a while back when either an Air Canada or Canada 3000 pilot was stopped and asked to surrender his lethal nail clippers, He only replied that he was the pilot of the plane, where the security guard continued with his stronghold. Then the pilot replied with: "If I wan to hijack my own plane, I'd rather use the crash axe thats behind the seat in the cockpit" to which the screener replied: "What, you got an AXE in there"?
 
schteevie


Democracies are vulnerable and freedom is fragile. We are all paying the costs and suffering the consequences of what those bastards have done...
It seems that your frustration is completely misplaced. Customs are ONLY reacting to the needs of a much highter security level imposed on all of us by the events you know.
I would be a lot more than frustrated, I should say even afraid, if nothing was being done to increase security. Of course I know the costs of it and I pay them with a smile (a yellow one)
 
I just did the Calgary San Francisco return trip last week and was able to sample Canadian and US security and immigration.

Departing YYC you pre-clear US customs and immigration then go through security. IT took approximately 1 minute at each of these counters. They did not make us take our shoes off but they were randomly doing such with pax. My digital camera and our cell phones were checked.

Heading north from SFO, security did not even look in my camera bag or check the cell phone. They did however make me take my sandals off and submit them to xray (killed some of the "growths" on them
2.gif
)as they were doing on all pax. Customs and immigration in YYC took less than a minute as a returning Canuck.

All in all no big deal in either direction. I have been subjected to far tighter security in Europe since the mid-70s after the Munich Massacre at the Olympics.
Don't even think about how long it took to get through security in Tehran a few years ago.


FWIW - poorest security ---Athens
most belligerant and at the same-time ineffectual security has to be at Frankfurt.

as far as the AF guy is concerned - stick him in jail for stupidity if nothing else