Bomb scare at Thiruvananthapuram airport; hijack attempt gone awry?

Bangalore: Preliminary investigations into the discovery of a bomb in the Kingfisher Airlines flight IT 4731 from Bangalore to Thiruvananthapuram suggest a hijack attempt that went awry.
Points out a senior intelligence official, “The bomb was found next to the food and beverages galley in the rear of the ATR aircraft. In this type of aircraft, the luggage is kept next to the cockpit; it is not accessible to others, except to loaders and unloaders. The placement of the bomb next to food-trays suggests that someone was assigned to take it there and hijack the aircraft.”
“We will question the caterers. It seems to have been done in a hurry. There was no detonator, which indicates that someone with a detonator wanted to retrieve the bomb,” the official said.
An airline official, who did not want to be named, said aviation authorities always woke up only after some incident occurred and were not proactive on the issue of passenger safety.
“.. Most airports have infrastructure for five stages of baggage checks but if a baggage passes the first stage – laser penetration to check for explosives – they do not bother about the four other checks,” he said.
Meanwhile, another airline official said that there was nothing new about the security measures suggested in the circular issued by the regional aviation authority.
23/03/10 MK Madhusoodan/Daily News & Analysis

To Read the News in full at Source, Click the Headline

Categories: Airports Mar 2010, Kingfisher Mar 2010, Safety Mar 2010