British Journalist Smuggles Fake Bomb Onto Plane

[Roguish Lawyer]

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=stor...0328&printer=1

Probe after journalist smuggles fake bomb on British plane

Mon Aug 23, 7:03 PM ET

LONDON (AFP) - British transport officials launched an urgent investigation after an undercover reporter smuggled fake bomb-making equipment on board a holiday jet at a central England airport.

"We are following with the airport the security issues raised as a matter of urgency," a spokesman from the government's Department of Transport said after the apparent lapse.

The probe was ordered after the journalist posed as a baggage handler at Birmingham International Airport and took fake explosive equipment on to a Boeing 757 carrying 220 holidaymakers.

According to the Sun, Britain's top-selling daily newspaper, reporter Anthony France, 31, was employed by private contractor Aviance despite giving bogus references and bank details.

The newspaper published Tuesday photographs France took of himself with the fake bomb in the hold of the Thomas Cook flight bound for Mallorca when he was left alone by supervisors for five minutes last week.

Although the fake bomb's components set off the metal detector, France was apparently waved through after telling staff steel toecaps had activated the alarm.

The Sun said the 200-gram makeshift device was half the size of the bomb which blew up a flight in mid-air over Lockerbie, southwest Scotland, in December 1988, killing all 259 people on board plus 11 on the ground.

"Had I been one of Osama Bin Laden's terrorists, I could have wiped out more than 220 British passengers... and thousands more on the ground below," France said.

[Roguish Lawyer]

Here is the article in the Sun, including photos:

http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2004391268,00.html

[QRQ 30]

These idiots have an advantage real terrorists, or should I say OTHER terrorists don't have. They don't pay the same consequences. Attempting to smuggle weapons or explosives or other banned substances should be forcefully prosecuted and the employers of the reporters should be held accountable and certainly not be allowed to intervene in their behalf. Throw a fewe in the pokey for six months and see if this BS doesn't dwindle.

[Huey14]

A similer thing happened to me. I went through the detector, and set it off. Was wanded down, crappily, I might add. Then the AVSEC girl asks,

"Are you wearing steelcaps?"

"Yep"

"Oh, well off you go then."

Not good, miss.

[Solid]

QRQ,
I'm not going to disagree with you, but the situation reminds me a lot of network security on the internet. Often, hackers will be employed to 'hit' sites to test the security for flaws. This man was not employed by the airline to do so, which I think is wrong (he should be punished), but I think that it might be prudent for the airlines to hire people to do this.

Safe people, of course. Checked-out people.

JMO,

Solid

[NousDefionsDoc]

I would be concerned about the hiring practices.

"Fake" bombs aren't a true test of the system to me, although I don't know that much about airlines. For example, how does a dog hit on "fake" explosives?

[QRQ 30]

Solid: I would be surprised if most companies don't. The difference is that these people aren't looking for a story or notoriety. In the event of a breach, the offending TSA agent or airline employee should be yanked on the spot. I have yet to work for a company who didn't have an extensive "loss prevention" department. They are total pricks but that is theiir job. We don't need amateures looking for notoriety. If one were to get bitten in the ass by a sniffing dog, I would ROTFLMAO>

Just what we need is some "heeeros" advertising to prospective terrorists, the holes in our security.

[Solid]

QRQ, agree 100%.

NDD- I was thinking that as I was writing. It's hard to get around.

Have a good evening,

Solid