Fake pilots and child air traffic controllers

Much money, time and effort is put into deterring would-be suicide bombers from getting onto planes but little is done to check up on ordinary workers who have regular access to sensitive arears in airports. Probably because money comes first in the minds of those in the aviation business, not a lot is done to maintain regular checks on the workers. By all means strip the passengers bare, lead them through electronic devices that have bells and whistles on them, and charge them extra for such delights, but don't get too rigorous with the staff. One check and they're in.

A Swedish pilot has been arrested at Amsterdam Airport as he was about to fly a jet with 101 passengers to Turkey. He has been without a valid licence to fly for 13 years, but that hasn't stopped him. The pilot said he had been flying for European airlines and had logged 10,000 hours. Dutch police said he once had a licence to fly small planes but it had expired and it did not allow him to fly large jets. Good detective work there. It just goes to show how many people can be so convincing. Then there is the child who was apparently allowed to direct planes at New York's JFK airport. Admittedly he had his father, a qualified air traffic controller, giving him a lead, and the authorities are taking a dim view, not unnaturally. One wonders what the other staff in the control tower were doing and thinking. It didn't faze the pilots either.

There are many occasions where people have decided to pose as pilots, doctors, teachers, nurses, etc. For many there appears to be an uncontrollable desire to pose as somebody else. Perhaps the authorities should have an amnesty and see how many fakers come out of disguise. My guess is there are far more than we realise.

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