The History Channel broadcast a program Sunday night titled Grounded on 9/11 which was about the terrorist attack and the first ever order by the FAA to ground all aircraft. Around the time that the order went out to stop all take offs, the pilot of United Flight 23, scheduled to take off from Newark to Los Angeles, kept it on the ground and returned to the gate. And there was this:
Narrator: "It's reported that several unruly allegedly middle Eastern men rushed from the plane leaving their luggage behind. Inside the bags officials find Al Queda instruction sheets, but false IDs prevent investigators from ever locating the bags' true owners."
John Carr, President of the National Airline Pilots Association: "I maintain to this day, based on my personal belief and based on the events of that morning, the decision to halt airlines in all likelihood probably precluded other attacks."
That's something I must have forgotten. There's nothing in The 9/11 Commission Report about it. I searched through the report with several relevant words and phrases -- you wouldn't believe how many times "23" appears -- and came up with nothing.
But if it's true, these guys must have gone back into hiding, and that is a very sobering thought. The good news is that they probably weren't leadership material. But the next time someone wails on about how bad the Patriot Act is it might be well to remember that there are still people out there who mean us real harm.
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