KLM Incident Raises Security Questions...
Apr 11th 2005, 3:14 pm
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KLM Incident Raises Security Questions...
Homeland Security considers emergency amendment
Monday, April 11, 2005
"WASHINGTON (CNN) -- An incident in which U.S. officials refused to
allow a KLM Royal Dutch Airlines 747 to fly over the United States has
brought to light a potential hole in the nation's homeland security
safety net.
Currently, the United States requires international airlines to make
certain that passengers on flights to and from the United States are
not on a list of suspected terrorists. But no such check is required
if a plane is transiting -- flying over the country without landing.
But on Friday, U.S. authorities denied permission for KLM Flight 685
to transit U.S. airspace after hearing indirectly that two passengers
on the flight were on the "no-fly" list.
U.S. officials said they learned about the two people from Mexico,
where the plane was destined after taking off from Amsterdam.
The plane, which was in Canadian airspace when U.S. officials denied
entry, returned to the Netherlands. It had 278 people and 15 horses
onboard.
The incident irked KLM and Dutch officials, especially because, they
said the United States never requested an interview of the two
passengers and did not indicate why they were of interest. A KLM
official said that after returning to Amsterdam, the two men flew to
London and then back to their home countries.
A Dutch official told CNN the Netherlands will take the matter to the
European Union in Brussels to seek clarification about whether checks
of "no-fly" lists are required for flights transiting the United
States.
KLM officials said they are under no obligation to check passengers on
transiting planes against terror watch lists.
"In our interpretation, this was not a flight to or from the United
States. It was to Mexico," KLM spokesman Bart Koster said. The flight
"never had the intention to make a landing in the United States."
But KLM has now begun checking its passenger lists for flights flying
over the United States against the U.S. "no-fly" list to avoid
repeating last week's incident.
Koster also expressed irritation about the timing of the incident --
saying the United States was late in notifying KLM that it would not
permit the plane to transit.
U.S. officials said Mexico provided the names after accessing the KLM
list and comparing it with a list of suspected terrorists. Such
sharing of information is allowed under U.S.-Mexican security
agreements, they said.
An official with the Department of Homeland Security said the agency
is considering an emergency amendment that would require airlines to
check transiting flights' passenger manifests against the list.
In the meantime, the official said, if the United States determines
that a flight scheduled to fly over the country is carrying a
passenger on the "no-fly" list, it will be prohibited from entering
U.S. airspace"
Monday, April 11, 2005
"WASHINGTON (CNN) -- An incident in which U.S. officials refused to
allow a KLM Royal Dutch Airlines 747 to fly over the United States has
brought to light a potential hole in the nation's homeland security
safety net.
Currently, the United States requires international airlines to make
certain that passengers on flights to and from the United States are
not on a list of suspected terrorists. But no such check is required
if a plane is transiting -- flying over the country without landing.
But on Friday, U.S. authorities denied permission for KLM Flight 685
to transit U.S. airspace after hearing indirectly that two passengers
on the flight were on the "no-fly" list.
U.S. officials said they learned about the two people from Mexico,
where the plane was destined after taking off from Amsterdam.
The plane, which was in Canadian airspace when U.S. officials denied
entry, returned to the Netherlands. It had 278 people and 15 horses
onboard.
The incident irked KLM and Dutch officials, especially because, they
said the United States never requested an interview of the two
passengers and did not indicate why they were of interest. A KLM
official said that after returning to Amsterdam, the two men flew to
London and then back to their home countries.
A Dutch official told CNN the Netherlands will take the matter to the
European Union in Brussels to seek clarification about whether checks
of "no-fly" lists are required for flights transiting the United
States.
KLM officials said they are under no obligation to check passengers on
transiting planes against terror watch lists.
"In our interpretation, this was not a flight to or from the United
States. It was to Mexico," KLM spokesman Bart Koster said. The flight
"never had the intention to make a landing in the United States."
But KLM has now begun checking its passenger lists for flights flying
over the United States against the U.S. "no-fly" list to avoid
repeating last week's incident.
Koster also expressed irritation about the timing of the incident --
saying the United States was late in notifying KLM that it would not
permit the plane to transit.
U.S. officials said Mexico provided the names after accessing the KLM
list and comparing it with a list of suspected terrorists. Such
sharing of information is allowed under U.S.-Mexican security
agreements, they said.
An official with the Department of Homeland Security said the agency
is considering an emergency amendment that would require airlines to
check transiting flights' passenger manifests against the list.
In the meantime, the official said, if the United States determines
that a flight scheduled to fly over the country is carrying a
passenger on the "no-fly" list, it will be prohibited from entering
U.S. airspace"
