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This airplane incident seems to say that the policy of the
government idiots in the Homeland Security is
"Bust head first, think last".
Which is typical of cops and other government thugs.
Probably because busting head of bad guys is something that cops really enjoy doing.
Even if it's later found out the bad guys aren't bad guys.
In this case the first news reports said an alleged fist fight broke out on the plane. This report seems to say there wasn't a fist fight, but a passenger lowered is seat too quickly and bumped the legs of the passenger behind him. The pilot overreacted and returned the plane to the airport. The idiots in Homeland Security and the Air Force sent up some F-16 fighter jets to intercept the airplane. What are they going to do? Shoot down the plane killing all 144 passengers because a passenger lowered his seat too quickly bumping the knees of the passenger behind him.
Airplane annoyance leads to brouhaha in the skies over D.C. Washington Post – Wed Jun 1, 11:28 am ET Before things got out of hand, it was a typical annoyance that happens once a flight gets airborne: A passenger hit the recline button and sent his seat intimately close to the lap of the guy sitting behind him. What followed wasn’t typical at all: a smack to the head, peacemakers diving about the cabin to intervene and a pair of Air Force F-16 fighter jets scrambling into the night skies over Washington. It happened late Sunday, just after a United Airlines Boeing 767 bound for Ghana with 144 passengers took off from Dulles International Airport. Not long after the 10:44 p.m. departure for the overnight flight, the offending seat was lowered into the offended lap, and a fight ensued. A flight attendant and another passenger jumped in between, said sources familiar with the incident who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to provide details. The pilot has complete authority over the aircraft, a United spokesman said, and he decided to return to Dulles to sort things out rather than continue the transatlantic flight to Ghana when he was unsure of the scope of the problem. Airline and Homeland Security Department officials said they had no other details on the incident. Since Sept. 11, 2001, pilots have learned to be wary. In recent years, disturbances have revealed terrorist attempts to ignite explosives hidden in shoes and underwear. Air Force fighter jets stand ready to respond to situations such as this one, in which passengers, who might be terrorists, cause trouble in flight. A 767 can take off with 16,700 gallons of fuel, and for the more-than-5,000-mile flight to Accra, Ghana, it probably would have needed all of it. The full load of fuel weighs more than 57 tons, and, although a 767 can get that weight airborne, it can’t land with it. As the plane turned back to Dulles, an air traffic controller directed the United pilot to fly around for about 25 minutes, shadowed by the fighter jets, to burn off an undetermined amount of fuel. Audio transmissions indicate that the two Air Force fighters scrambled from Andrews Air Force Base at 11:03 p.m, just as the plane reentered Washington airspace. Five minutes later, the fighter escorts took up position 1,000 feet above the jetliner as it headed toward Dulles, sources said. At 11:10 p.m., the controller asked about the passenger who slapped his neighbor, and a voice from the cockpit replied: “The passenger is not secured at this time; the passenger has settled down, though, but an assault has taken place, but at this time he is not secured.” Members of the Dulles police force met the flight at the gate, said Rob Yingling, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority. Officers determined that the incident didn’t warrant pressing charges, Yingling said. It was probably expensive, however. In addition to the fuel cost — jet fuel averaged $3.03 a gallon last month — the flight was delayed until Monday. Given that no arrests were made, there was no official record of the incident, and the identities of the men involved were not known. It was unclear whether they were on the flight when it left Monday morning or, if so, where they sat, United spokesman Mike Trevino said.
The insane Homeland Security - Having fighter planes escort a commercial airline back to the airport after a fist fight breaks out on the plane. What were the F-16s going to do? Shoot the plane down killing all 144 passengers if the fist fight resumed? Lets face it the Homeland Security program is nothing more then a jobs program for all the police thugs in it. Plane returns after fistfight between passengers May. 31, 2011 05:08 PM Associated Press WASHINGTON - Government and airline officials say a United Airlines plane with 144 people aboard returned to Washington-Dulles International Airport for an emergency landing escorted by two F-16 fighter jets after a fight broke out between passengers. Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Laura Brown says Flight 990 bound for Accra, Ghana, returned to Dulles in Chantilly, Va., just after midnight Sunday after a fistfight in the cabin. Government officials confirmed that fighter jets were scrambled from Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland. United spokesman Mike Trevino said Tuesday that the Boeing 767 dumped fuel as a safety precaution to lighten its weight on landing. The Washington Post, which first reported the incident, reported that the fight began not long after takeoff when a passenger lowered his seat and a passenger behind him objected.
Airplane annoyance leads to brouhaha in the skies over D.C. By Ashley Halsey III, Published: May 31 Before things got out of hand, it was a typical annoyance that happens once a flight gets airborne: A passenger hit the recline button and sent his seat intimately close to the lap of the guy sitting behind him. What followed wasn’t typical at all: a smack to the head, peacemakers diving about the cabin to intervene and a pair of Air Force F-16 fighter jets scrambling into the night skies over Washington. F-16s were scrambled Sunday night to escort a United Airlines flight en route to Ghana back to Dulles airport. In this audio between the pilot of the United flight and the control tower, the pilot is heard saying that an assault has taken place. F-16s were scrambled Sunday night to escort a United Airlines flight en route to Ghana back to Dulles airport. In this audio between the pilot of the United flight and the control tower, the pilot is heard saying that an assault has taken place. It happened late Sunday, just after a United Airlines Boeing 767 bound for Ghana with 144 passengers took off from Dulles International Airport. Not long after the 10:44 p.m. departure for the overnight flight, the offending seat was lowered into the offended lap, and a fight ensued. A flight attendant and another passenger jumped in between, said sources familiar with the incident who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to provide details. The pilot has complete authority over the aircraft, a United spokesman said, and he decided to return to Dulles to sort things out rather than continue the transatlantic flight to Ghana when he was unsure of the scope of the problem. Airline and Homeland Security Department officials said they had no other details on the incident. Since Sept. 11, 2001, pilots have learned to be wary. In recent years, disturbances have revealed terrorist attempts to ignite explosives hidden in shoes and underwear. Air Force fighter jets stand ready to respond to situations such as this one, in which passengers, who might be terrorists, cause trouble in flight. A 767 can take off with 16,700 gallons of fuel, and for the more-than-5,000-mile flight to Accra, Ghana, it probably would have needed all of it. The full load of fuel weighs more than 57 tons, and, although a 767 can get that weight airborne, it can’t land with it. As the plane turned back to Dulles, an air traffic controller directed the United pilot to fly around for about 25 minutes, shadowed by the fighter jets, to burn off an undetermined amount of fuel. Audio transmissions indicate that the two Air Force fighters scrambled from Andrews Air Force Base at 11:03 p.m, just as the plane reentered Washington airspace. Five minutes later, the fighter escorts took up position 1,000 feet above the jetliner as it headed toward Dulles, sources said. At 11:10 p.m., the controller asked about the passenger who slapped his neighbor, and a voice from the cockpit replied: “The passenger is not secured at this time; the passenger has settled down, though, but an assault has taken place, but at this time he is not secured.” Members of the Dulles police force met the flight at the gate, said Rob Yingling, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority. Officers determined that the incident didn’t warrant pressing charges, Yingling said. It was probably expensive, however. In addition to the fuel cost — jet fuel averaged $3.03 a gallon last month — the flight was delayed until Monday. Given that no arrests were made, there was no official record of the incident, and the identities of the men involved were not known. It was unclear whether they were on the flight when it left Monday morning or, if so, where they sat, United spokesman Mike Trevino said. |