Read this document for yourself. It’s not long.
As you will see, the Dec. 25 terror attempt — that was stopped by brave and determined passengers — was a counterintelligence failure. The government had a lot of the information needed to thwart the terrorist — it’s just that nobody did anything much with this information.
As the report stresses, the failures fell into three broad categories:
- A failure of intelligence analysis — the counterintelligence community failed to “identify, correlate and fuse” the various pieces of information about the terror plot
- A failure of the intelligence community to “assign responsibility and accountability for follow up of high priority threat streams, run down all leads, and track them through to completion”
- Shortcomings of the “watchlisting system” which could have prevented the suspect from boarding a plane to the U.S.
Take a look, and let me know what you think about this.
November was a good month for the airlines — according to Dept. of Transportation statistics, they set a single-month record for on-time performance. And they hardly lost any bags, either!
On-Time: The overall on-time arrival rate for Nov. 2009 was nearly 89% — very good, especially when compared to an on-time arrival rate of just 77% for Oct. 2009.
Lost Bags: Let’s heap some more praise on the airlines; the number of “mishandled bags” (you know that better as “lost or delayed bags”) broke the record at just 2.78 reports per 1,000 passengers — the lowest record since 1987, when they started keeping those stats.
Pets: Sadly, here’s where the hot streak ends — in Nov. the airlines reported 3 pet deaths and 1 injury. Let’s hope they do better next time.
Maybe you saw this video — journalists picked up on my reporting about a new round of airfare hikes that rang in the new year.
Don’t worry, the hikes won’t affect the current crop of great sales, and they’re not large hikes, but face it: every little bit we can save helps. And that’s why I created the Holiday Travel Surcharge Chart.
This Holiday Travel Surcharge Chart shows you which airlines have added “special surcharges” to which dates. We use the term “holiday” because it began with airlines targeting dates around Thanksgiving and Christmas, and in 2010 surcharges have been added to dates around Valentine’s Day, Memorial Day — plus popular travel days in March for spring break, and popular summer vacation travel dates.
Our chart helps you avoid surcharges. Check it out — before you book your next flight.
Take a look at FlightStats Airport Delays map — it’s shimmering with red lights — which mean, major delays at Chicago’s O’Hare and Midway, and in Cincinnati and Memphis — with more delays in Houston’s George Bush and Kansas City, St. Louis, and Little Rock.
Feeling secure because you’re not traveling in or out of any of those airports today? Well, don’t forget — the plane you’re scheduled to fly on may be coming from one of those snowed-in or icy cities. In any case, our number one tips is check with your airline before you leave the house! And here are some other tips for travelers in lousy weather:
1. Batteries: Cell phone batteries should be full and your charger on you (not in a checked-bag)
2. Phone Numbers: Add your airline’s number to your cell, and the number of other airlines that fly to your destination. If you’re in a long line to change a flight, you’ll want to be on the phone, too (you might reach help faster)
3. Follow Twitter: Airlines are big on social media, and may tweet info on cancellations and delays faster than websites
4. Food: Bring some from home or stop on the way to the airport — airport restaurants may close early (or not open at all)
5. Stay calm: This is especially true when going through security; everyone’s on edge now, and any deviation from the rules could land you in real trouble (or at least delay you further)
We’ve heard stories about planes being diverted to drop off problem passengers before, but nothing quite like this.
It seems a Hawaiian Airlines flight out of Portland, Oregon Wednesday was about an hour-and-a-half into its flight to Maui when the captain decided to turn around and head back because one of the passengers — a 56 year old Salem, Oregon man — became “disruptive” and “uncooperative” according to several news reports.
What makes this story a little different is that the Oregon Air National Guard scrambled two F-15 fighter jets to accompany the commercial jetliner part of the way home.
Apparently the passenger refused to stow his carryon bag, and is said to have made some kind of threatening remarks to the crew. ABCNews.com is also reporting that the man passed what was described as a “disturbing note” to a flight attendant, but so far we don’t know exactly what the note said. Also unclear: who requested the military escort.
Once on the ground, this uncooperative passenger and his companion were questioned by the FBI, and — released. So far, no charges have been filed.
Meanwhile, the Hawaiian Airlines jet was searched, the passengers got back on, and the plane departed again — without the passenger in question or his friend.
It sounds a bit like overkill, but then again — everyone’s on edge — and no one wants a repeat of the failed terror attempt we saw on Christmas Day.
A big storm is brewing: look for snow and strong winds to batter the Midwest tonight and tomorrow, and a cold front moving into the Southeast.
So United Airlines is now urging its passengers who will be traveling to/from or through those regions to think about rescheduling, and they will drop the change fees — or, if you cancel altogether, you’ll get a refund. All the details are on the United website.
If you’re traveling on another airline, check the website. Delta is now letting Southeast travelers learn about their options, and chances are good the other airlines will be doing the same.
Okay, here’s two of the worst I’ve heard of, at least this week. Jog my memory, if you wish, for others — I’m sure there are plenty more security snafus out there.
Hiding Real Bombs in Real People’s Luggage — Jaunted relates the absolutely harrowing tale of security screeners at an airport in Slovakia in which they performed a test that involved hiding actual bomb parts in the luggage of unsuspecting passengers! And while security caught the parts in 8 of the 9 bags, one passenger made it all the way to Dublin, with bomb parts in his luggage. Crazy or what?
Taking Play-Doh from a Baby — A 3-year old child watched sadly as a TSA officer removed his favorite toy from the family carryon — 20 little tubs of Play-doh — and confiscated it. No, it is not on the TSA list of banned items, but according to the AP, because “plastic explosives can be camaouflaged to look like Play-Doh, screeners are told to use their own discretion” — and use it, they did. Sorry, kid.
I’m not perfect, but I did predict 2009 would be “The Year of the Airline Ticket Sale” so at least I got that right.
Let’s see how good I am when it comes to 2010 predictions.
In my latest column for ABCNews.com, I say that airfares will be generally higher (though there will be some good sales — in fact, we’re seeing good airfare sales right now).
I also say we can expect a couple of “unusual” new airline fees: I’m going to be coy about exactly what to expect there, but possibilities include fees for carryons — and maybe fees related to cell phones. I don’t really expect cells on planes in 2010, though — we’ll have a debate first, then see them on planes in 2011.
I’ve got a few more predictions, and you can see all of them in the column. And, next January, we’ll find out how good a seer I was this year.
