FBI: No arrest for passenger pulled from plane at Sea-Tac
SEATTLE (AP) - Military jets scrambled to escort an Alaska Airlines flight into Seattle and authorities took a passenger off the plane Thursday night, after a caller told the FBI that a possible hijacker was aboard, officials said.
FBI agents interviewed but did not arrest the passenger aboard the flight from Kona, Hawaii.
"We're not anticipating an arrest," Seattle FBI spokeswoman Ayn Dietrich said late Thursday night.
Two F-15 jets from the Oregon Air National Guard escorted Flight 819 in to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport after a threat call was received at the Honolulu FBI office.
Agents talked to the unidentified man for nearly two hours, Dietrich said. She described him as cooperative.
"I can tell you any threats or tips we receive we take seriously in case they're a credible threat," she said earlier. "We certainly get a number of calls that turn out to be not credible."
The agency's focus now switches to the caller.
A caller told the Honolulu FBI office on Thursday afternoon that a man aboard the flight was a possible hijacker, said FBI spokesman Tom Simon in Honolulu.
Simon declined to provide any details about the caller.
"We reserve the right to investigate what appears to be a hoax phone call," he said late Thursday night. "We'll let the world know if any charges are filed.
"The FBI gets lots of hoax phone calls but something that rises to this level is not something that we're going to take lightly. A hoax phone call of this nature wastes a lot of resources."
Making a false statement to the FBI is a federal crime, he noted.
FBI agents, Port of Seattle police and Transportation Security Administration personnel were waiting for the passenger in Seattle, Dietrich said.
Officers boarded the jet through rear stairs and removed the man from the plane, airline spokesman Paul McElroy said. The passenger had been seated at the back of the aircraft and "slept most of the flight," he added.
The flight crew was aware of the threat but reported no unusual behavior, McElroy said, adding law enforcement made the decision to scramble the military jets.
Passengers deplaned normally after the man was removed. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport spokesman Perry Cooper said airport K-9 dogs then checked the plane but found nothing amiss.
FBI agents interviewed but did not arrest the passenger aboard the flight from Kona, Hawaii.
"We're not anticipating an arrest," Seattle FBI spokeswoman Ayn Dietrich said late Thursday night.
Two F-15 jets from the Oregon Air National Guard escorted Flight 819 in to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport after a threat call was received at the Honolulu FBI office.
Agents talked to the unidentified man for nearly two hours, Dietrich said. She described him as cooperative.
"I can tell you any threats or tips we receive we take seriously in case they're a credible threat," she said earlier. "We certainly get a number of calls that turn out to be not credible."
The agency's focus now switches to the caller.
A caller told the Honolulu FBI office on Thursday afternoon that a man aboard the flight was a possible hijacker, said FBI spokesman Tom Simon in Honolulu.
Simon declined to provide any details about the caller.
"We reserve the right to investigate what appears to be a hoax phone call," he said late Thursday night. "We'll let the world know if any charges are filed.
"The FBI gets lots of hoax phone calls but something that rises to this level is not something that we're going to take lightly. A hoax phone call of this nature wastes a lot of resources."
Making a false statement to the FBI is a federal crime, he noted.
FBI agents, Port of Seattle police and Transportation Security Administration personnel were waiting for the passenger in Seattle, Dietrich said.
Officers boarded the jet through rear stairs and removed the man from the plane, airline spokesman Paul McElroy said. The passenger had been seated at the back of the aircraft and "slept most of the flight," he added.
The flight crew was aware of the threat but reported no unusual behavior, McElroy said, adding law enforcement made the decision to scramble the military jets.
Passengers deplaned normally after the man was removed. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport spokesman Perry Cooper said airport K-9 dogs then checked the plane but found nothing amiss.
TSA DOESN'T SCREEN FOR CRANK CALLS?
Â
Â
I'll be he doesn't sleep as well the next time he flies.
I wonder, something is fishy, the names Ayn Dietrich, Paul McElroy,Tom Simon, State Trooper Tommy Pillow,
tricky? Are you sure there not the same person? Perhaps ask Senotr Patty Murray, todays news Patty Eakes if she knows Paul Mahlum?
A couple of questions . I hope someone can answer. Are fighters on stand by 24/7 365? I know during presidential visits there are normally aircraft up the entire time of a visit. At least in communities that are not close to big cities. Do fighters come up along side aircraft to let the pilot know they're there ? Or do they keep a distance? Are the fighters armed or for "show"?Â
 @Steve Giovanis From what I remember, they are armed and ready to shoot down the aircraft to prevent another 9/11 type of scenario. Â
Â
There are military jets all over the country that are ready to scramble for whatever reason at a moment's notice - I think they can be airborne in just a few minutes at any time - so yes, there are jets on standby 24/7/365 - but not just for intercepting civilian aircraft that may be a threat.Â
 @Datsuyama  @Steve Giovanis And remember, F-15's are insanely fast....airliner, not so much.......
 @Steve Giovanis Interception procedures are covered in the Aeronautical Information Manual, a reference used by all pilots. They do come along side, among other things.
I just want to know if they made him take his shoes off before boarding.Â
Maybe he was a member of a sleeper cell? :)
That's one way to get off the airplane first :)
While totally speculation here. This could be a result of the see something say something campaign. I'm sorry to say but a lot of people are pretty dumb. So its not impossible that somebody thought the passenger was suspicious for who knows why and called it in.
 @boeing737200 Then identified the person by name? It sounds more like a dumb prank by a friend or enemy.
 @RandomShiz2  @boeing737200 pizzed off ex-wife!!
 @RandomShiz2 I don't see that in the article.
 @boeing737200 I know it's 12 days later, there was a better article on KIRO that mentioned this.
 @boeing737200  @RandomShiz2 Well, they pulled one specific passenger off the plane for questioning. It would seem reasonable to assume the person was identified by name.
It sounds like whomever called in the complaint needs to be investigated and possible charged...
 @takncarabizniz It sounds like you read the article too.
One of the very few advantages to having a layover in Portland is getting to watch the Oregon Air National Guard F-15s take off and land at the airport....pretty dang cool....
Probably snoring too loud. That can incite terror nearly anywhere.
Good thing SPD were not involved. That plane would have been toast.
KOMO you need to check your facts. Law enforcement does not scramble military jets. They can request NORAD for help. It is then NORAD's call if they will be scrambled.Â
 Waste of Jet fuel.
Another flying imam incident? A trial run? Or a reasonable mistake? Hard to tell from this news report.
 @iconoclast:Â
So, it is now illegal to pray in public or discuss politics or to chat with your friends on a plane?
Â
THAT is all that was found to have happened in the "flying Imams incident".
Â
Nothing like a good conspiracy theory spiced with a dash of bigotry, eh?
I boarded a plane from Kona on Sunday night and was very suspicious of a gentlemen sitting across from my row. He was continuously told to put his electronics away, but the person continued to text and use their laptop. Finally they were told very sternly to put everything away (we nearly were about to take off)... my heart sank a little... not because i chose to judge this person, but they clearly were not following the rules and that in and of itself can make one weary (what text is so important to send  RIGHT before you take off)... Then to hear this is story I find it all the more interesting.... a coincidence of events. Maybe I am wrong for having my suspicions, but I'd rather have them then to be dumbfounded when or if something happened.Â
 @cna7 The fact that the person refused to power down their electronics doesn't make them a terrorist. Just another self absorbed American who doesn't think the rules apply to them.
@Petwlkr @cna7 Alec Baldwin anyone?
 @The WA Mama  @Petwlkr  @cna7 I was just about to ask what Alec Baldwin was like in real life......
And IF the man was a hijacker, the fighter jets would help in what way? Shoot him trough the window?
Whatdidisay
Â
You remember 911 don't you? Four aircraft commadeered and used as weapons of mass destruction agianst thousands.
Â
Sorry to have to be so blunt but if an aircraft is been taken over from the crew it needs to be stopped before it is used to kill innocent poeple on the ground.
Â
Â
 @AKjohn Conventional weapons are not weapons of mass destruction.
Â
An airliner filled with fuel is a primitive cruise missile, nothing more. You wouldn't call a 12,000 pound bunker buster or a FAE bomb a WMD - and they aren't.
Â
WMD label is attached only to NBC weapons - Nuclear, Biological, Chemical. It isn't about how many people they kill when deployed, but their potential to kill.
Â
More people died in the firebombing of Tokyo in World War II than Hiroshima or Nagaski, but no one would call napalm in a 500 pound dumb bomb a WMD.
@AKjohn That is NOT "mass destruction". A "weapon of mass destruction" is nuclear or biological weapon, capable of killing millions. You are getting confused with other government propaganda.
 @Damian  @AKjohn I would call nearly 3000 Mas.
 @AKjohn It's already been explained by two other people before you! You remember how to read don't you?
@WhatdidIsay? @AKjohn and sometimes if one has not refreshed the page previous posts don't show up until you post yours.... at least that has been my experience.
 @WhatdidIsay? Unfortunately after 9/11, there are now protocols in place by the military whether or not to shoot down a commercial or passenger airliner. Basically if the plane is hijacked and it's evident it's going to be used as a 'missile' to cause harm (i.e. aiming for a building to cause a large loss of life), they will receive orders to shoot down the airliner.
 @Kermee  @WhatdidIsay? The protocols existed before 9/11. During the Cold War there were operations called Ready 5 at US and NATO air bases around the world. A select group of two to eight fighter airplanes were in a constant state of preparedness, fully armed, fully fueled, and able to be wheels up in five minutes (hence ready five). For carrier operations Ready five pilots would literally sit in their planes, sometimes for hours upon hours, waiting for an order to stand down or takeoff. For ground operations rotating aircrews would be in a block house just a short sprint from the awaiting aircraft. The block house would have all of the amenities of a communal kitchen, a day room with recreational activities (TV, pool table, etc. etc.) and places to sleep. If the alarm was sounded the air crews would sprint from the block house and they would do a combat takeoff and be ready in about five minutes.
Â
Ready Five was suspended due to cost cuts in the post Cold War era under the Bush 41 administration. The need to scramble to meet Soviet bombers and support aircraft was no longer a real threat, and the costs were high.
Â
Sadly on 9/11 I with no Ready Five program, none of the aircraft scrambled to intercept the ongoing events were armed. Two F-16s from the 121st Washington D.C. Air National Guard were scrambled on orders from NORAD. The pilots orders were a suicide mission with instructions to ram United Flight 93 than to allow it to continue to its target (likely Washington D.C. - despite continued insistence in the press that the Capitol or White House was the target, the only people that know died in a crater in Pennsylvania) because there was no time to properly arm the aircraft.
Â
If 9/11 taught us anything, it was from an air defense stand point we had our pants down. Big time. Changes in protocol now have a return, somewhat to Ready 5, but nothing like it was during the Cold War era. The costs remain prohibitive in an era of austerity and the threats are unlikely.
Â
For example, if anyone tried to hijack a US plane today with box cutters, the passengers would beat them to death before they could take over. The reality is 9/11 changed not just government protocol, but the concept that if you sit, obey and listen, the hijackers will eventually let you go.
 @Howard Beale This makes sense. It's almost unbelievable at the same time, though. You don't want to believe it.
 @Howard Beale  @WhatdidIsay? My apologies. You two are absolutely correct. -- In this particular instance, my guess is after 9/11, dispatching armed fighters jets to intercept a possibly compromised aircraft are much more likely to happen now than before. -- Thank you so much for the well written and informative responses.
 @Kermee  @WhatdidIsay? Actually the protocol to shoot down a commercial airliner was in place long before 9/11. On 9/11 the planes did not transmit a hijack signal which is why they weren't intercepted.Â
Â
Hijacking has been a huge threat and has happened in this country before 9/11. Ever here of DB Cooper? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D._B._Cooper
Â
List of aircraft hijackings including several in US prior to 9/11:Â http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_aircraft_hijackings
 @Kermee dg54321.
Makes sense.
 @WhatdidIsay? 80-100 lives vs 1000.....if someone were hijacking the plane and planned to turn it against a building, etc like during 9/11......shooting the plane down would prevent greater loss of life. Sad but true.
Here's my guess. He went to HA on a vacation or maybe even work. Met someone who didn't want him to leave. She in turn called in the hoax, hoping his plane would get delayed (looks like she called too late) and she would get more time with him or he would decide to stay instead of returning to WA and more than likely his wife or girlfriend here.
@Jeff Valdez 10 more point awarded for being the lifetime viewer of the week!
 @Jeff Valdez My thought was a pissed off ex-girlfriend - but I like your theory too.
@Jeff Valdez 10 points awarded for best use of pure speculation.
so here is what I think... They served the dinner...The accused made a comment like..."Dang! This Chicken is da bomb!!!" the other passenger overheard the last part and ...well...you know the rest !!!
 @Connie Lopez
 Not even close. Reread the article.
but how could anyone hijack a plane when we have our super awesome homeland security checking everyone out at the airports? i mean, those TSA scrubs know their stuff - grandma in a wheel chair? STRIPSEARCH!
@SwampThing --- Funny you say that, but grandma in a wheel chair (and children) is obviously the least likely person, which is why they are checked and rechecked. You'd never suspect grandma to have a bomb under her shirt, would you? Terrorists are counting on that. TSA must think outside the box because terrorists already are.
 @SwampThing LOL. -- Ironically, I've flown out of Kona before and those TSA agents are so 'lax', it's somewhat funny. I remember an article from about a year ago that at least one of the airports in Hawaii was 'reprimanded' because they weren't following security procedures and for being too lax.
 @Kermee  @SwampThing I think it's the overall layout of the Kona airport, too. Having tropical breezes coming through all day probably doesn't help the 'serious' factor.
 @Kermee I lived 3 years in Hawaii and believe me, much of the islands peoples are way too lax in everything they do. Heck, Aloha Friday can be expected to see many not show to work.
 @georgef Very true. "Hang loose." The attitude is very relaxed in Hawaii. However, I look at it as a good thing.Â
"Hawaii time" is not just a time zone, its a lifestyle. And, lets be honest, that is one of the reasons we like vacationing there. ;)