Federal no-fly list comes under fire at Air India probe

Ottawa: The head of the Air India inquiry is raising questions about whether Canada's newly minted no-fly list is really an effective tool in fighting international terrorism.
Former Supreme Court justice John Major noted Tuesday that a similar list in the United States has been plagued by problems - including false matches in which people with names similar to those of suspected terrorists are pulled aside at airport check-in counters.
"If we're looking to avoid what happened on 9-11, it's presumably to keep dangerous people capable of blowing planes up or capturing (them) off the plane," said Major.
"It seems difficult that you can do that by name alone."
The comments came as Major heard testimony from federal Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart, who has long expressed similar concerns.
The intent of the list is to bar anyone deemed a danger to air safety from boarding a commercial flight.
But Stoddart maintained the criteria for being considered dangerous are so vague that it's hard to figure out how people end up on the list - or why barring them from flying is an appropriate solution.
"I don't understand it," Stoddart told the inquiry.
"You're not safe to fly, but then presumably you're simply told that you can't fly - and you're released to go about your daily business. Well, what is it about you that makes you so dangerous?"
Major suggested a better approach might be to subject people on the list to additional screening, but not automatically forbid them from boarding.
"I don't understand why anybody can't get on the plane if sufficient precaution is taken," he said. 06/11/07 Jim Brown, THE CANADIAN PRESS/940 News, Canada

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Categories: Air India - International Nov 2007, Foreign Nov 2007, Safety Nov 2007