Seattle airplane theft prompts a review of security measures
SEATTLE — The spectacular theft of a 76-seat plane from the Seattle airport by a ground crew employee is prompting an industrywide review of how to thwart such insider security threats, though it remains unclear what steps airlines might take.
“This is too big a deal. It’s not going to go away,” said Glen Winn, a former Secret Service agent who teaches in the University of Southern California’s aviation security program. “There’s going to be a lot of discussion, a lot of meetings, a lot of finger-pointing, and it’s going to come down to: How do we stop it?”
Investigators are continuing to piece together how 3 1⁄2-year Horizon Air employee Richard Russell stole the empty Bombardier Q400 turboprop from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport on Friday and took off on a roughly 75-minute flight, executing steep banks and even a barrel roll while being tailed by fighter jets. He finally crashed into a forested island south of Seattle.
Russell was killed. In conversation with an air-traffic controller, he described himself as “just a broken guy,” said he “wasn’t really planning on landing” the aircraft.
Port of Seattle Commissioner Courtney Gregoire said airport officials have been in touch with other airports and airlines to begin to assess procedures. Sea-Tac has added security guards in the cargo area where the plane was parked when Russell stole it, she said.
“We’re not waiting,” Gregoire said. “We expect a national-level conversation. We expect the federal government may have some ideas about regulation.”