globe_spinner

This just goes to show you that ignorance is what we really have to fear.

jkhuggins

Yes. If we accept your hypothetical that this passenger is a terrorist, with a bomb, what do you think the passenger is going to say if you walk up to him and say "Is that little black box a bomb?" Of course the passenger is going to say "No, it's not a bomb." (Unless the passenger is really stupid, I suppose.)

So, you walked up to the passenger, asked your question, and got an answer. Do you really know anything more than you did before you asked the question? Not really, since you could've predicted the answer. So, what was the point of asking the question in the first place? If he's really a terrorist, all you've done is tip him off that he's drawing attention to himself, which might make him more likely to act, not less.

tommyleo

You're cracking me up.

Why would the FA ask, "Is that a bomb?"

Instead, she would just speak to the passenger and ask about the item, in a non-accusatory way.

And as we are now finding out, that is EXACTLY what she did. Here's the latest update: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=twdt-...ayer_embedded#

It turns out the the passenger explained what he had to the FA very nicely, but the pilot decided to call the situation an "emergency" anyway.

Hate to say it, but I'm beginning to sense that anti-Semitism may have played a part in the flight crew's decision to not trust a 17-year-old BOY wearing an item made of leather and plastic.

goalie

oh, you got that right <grrrrrrr>

this nice jewish had his horns removed for just that reason

why? panic is a much better approach

just who is the "we" and what is the "something" you are supposed to look for? what if a pax was catholic and decided to cross themselves before takeoff? i have a better thought.....xenophobia (see the second paragraph of my post here from back in 2007)

can we make a voodoo doll in the likeness of the tsa?

craz

Hey if this Chief Inspector cant explain it correctly (they are not attached 1 to the other, nor does he know what to call them "an old factory" LoL)

how can we expect the FA to understand what was up

link to AP video of the CI; http://news.yahoo.com/video/us-15749...video=17740266

jkhuggins

Then my mission here is done.

Which actually goes to prove my point. Apparently, the answer to the question provided by the passenger had absolutely no effect on the decision to declare an emergency. So what, exactly, was gained by asking the question?

I'm not going to accuse someone of that sort of crime based on second-hand reports. On the other hand, Hanlon's Razor may apply nicely here.

alan747

1. So the flight attendant did ask. Good for her.
2. She told the pilot there was a "situation" anyway!?!?! Bad for her.
3. The pilot, given all the information he was, is a moron for diverting.
4. We are doomed as a country.

jrpaguia

+1.

And I can almost picture most of the general public nodding approvingly to all these "abundance of caution" and "better safe than sorry" theatrical overreactions. Sad to say that these ignorant cowards and idiots are really saying they'd be better red than dead.

tommyleo

I really want to believe it's just stupidity, too. But why would the flight crew freak out over a "suspicious" item that (1) went through security, (2) the passenger was doing nothing to hide, (3) the FA saw upclose, (4) is made out of leather and plastic? There must have been something "suspicious" about the passenger himself -- a polite, 17-year-old boy. Maybe it's because he's dressed as an Orthodox Jew.

I agree with #1-3. #4, no. This incident is just another of those dumb things that shouldn't happen, but do.

N965VJ

Is it me, or does that look familiar?

themicah

I think he said "olfactory" (as in "sense of smell"). Either way, I believe he meant phylacteries.

I could see how an RJ crew might get a little freaked out seeing someone strapping leather boxes onto himself in mid flight. My guess is that the vast, vast majority of Americans have never seen or heard of teffllin. Heck, most Jews I know don't even know how to wear them. But once everything was explained, I really don't see why the captain continued with the diversion. All I know is that it's a good thing no FAMs were on board, or we might have a dead 17yo on our hands.

_rds

I'll buy one of those. We can all carry them in our carryons and the screeners will have to look at 'em. Great idea.

Rick

IslandBased

Buy several and use a knitting needle as a skewer.

najay

The real point to this incident is even the airlines do not trust the TSA to do their job anymore.

N965VJ

It just dawned on me that this is the second Big Scare™ with a RJ that did not involve an intercept with F-16s. Someone must think aircraft of this size are not a risk, so this should be another nail in the coffin of LASP.