An explosive pilot?

[Kip Powick]

A VIRGIN Blue pilot who tested positive for traces of explosives and then avoided security guards was allowed to continue unchecked and fly a passenger aircraft.

The security breach at Sydney's domestic airport was sparked when the pilot, who has not been identified, was selected for the random explosives testing but left the security screening area while guards were waiting for the results of the sample.

But instead of calling in the Australian Federal Police and grounding all the outbound Virgin Blue flights until the pilot was found, the guards covered up the security breach.

An investigation by The Australian into the incident has exposed a widespread problem with the testing of pilots that could be exploited by terrorists.

Security sources say pilots are often not selected for the explosives testing because of their aggressive attitude towards it.

It is understood that there have been several incidents in Australian airports in which pilots have refused the random explosives test, leading to reprimands from the airlines.

Aviation security experts warned of the risks involved in pilots refusing to undergo the tests.

"If it became known that pilots were immune to screening it would be tempting to train as a pilot and get a job or target them and steal their passes," said Nick O'Brien, an associate professor in counter terrorism at Charles Sturt University.

A Virgin Blue spokeswoman said the company was investigating the allegations.

[mo32a]

A fellow in YYC who worked in the oil fields apparently accumulated enough sulphur powder on his clothes and duffel bag to be detained for several hours missing his flight.

If they tested every oil worker in Alberta that came in contact with sulphur on a daily basis, those flights might be pretty empty.

[Seeker]

"If it became known that pilots were immune to screening it would be tempting to train as a pilot and get a job or target them and steal their passes," said Nick O'Brien, an associate professor in counter terrorism at Charles Sturt University.

What a moron.

Yeah, let's hope the terrorists don't realize how easy it is to recruit someone with the aptitude to be a pilot, send them to college for two years, stand by them for a few years as they do night MEDEVACS in a Navajo, keep their fingers crossed that this person will manage to get an airline job and then hope that he or she can smuggle explosives onto an aircraft and manage to hide it in a place that is open to them but won't be noticed by the other pilots because otherwise they'll just have to bribe one of the minimum wage ramp workers or the guy who drives the fuel truck - you know, one of the thousands of airports workers who can pass through security with impunity.

On Halloween I was walking through an airport terminal when I noticed a woman dressed in a nurses costume pushing a handcart with bundles of newspapers. On her leg was a loop with a full size set of scissors - not the kind with the rounded end but the kind with a sharp point - basically two six-inch knives if you took the pivot screw out. I stopped her and asked how she got through security with the scissors and she looked at me like I had two heads saying that she always went through with those scissors since she needed them for her work - to cut the strap on the newspapers! I don't want to come across as superior but this woman's overall demeanor and mannerisms did not give the impression of intelligence or alertness and I really doubt that she would maintain proper care and control of the potential weapon that a pair of scissors could be in the hands of someone with malicious intent. This doesn't even begin to address the idiocy of allowing a full-size pair of scissors to be brought through security when a 1/4 inch hooked strap cutter is all that would be needed.

[Homerun]

This article misses the point. A pilot does not need to take explosives with him/her if he is intent on causing harm.