He stole a 76-seat Bombardier Q400 from Seattle-Tacoma Airport. Two NORAD F-15s scrambled from Portland. He was in contact with Air Traffic Control, apologized to his family. Said he was unwilling to land at a military base because "they would rough me up". Directed out over the Pacific by the fighters, crashed on an uninhabited island in Puget Sound.
A witness claimed he did a loop-de-loop but I didn't see it in his video.
I am completely convinced that suicidal depression can always be cured.
He had all the proper security credentials. He had been working his shift and was believed to still be in uniform. The baggage handler didn't seem out of place at all — until he was taxiing down the runway and taking off in a stolen passenger plane.
Media outlets identified him as Richard Russell, a 27-year-old who sparked a combination of amazement and fear as he flew — alone — a 76-seat Horizon Air Q400 plane for more than an hour before it crashed on a wooded area on Ketron Island south of Seattle.
He did a barrel roll. A daring swoop. Officials said they didn't believe he even had a pilot's license. "Incredible," Horizon Air President and Chief Executive Gary Beck said Saturday.
But investigators are still trying to understand why he decided to take the plane for a what appeared to be joy ride Friday evening from the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.
The act also reignited discussions about airport and aviation security, with Alaska Airlines Chairman and CEO Brad Tilden repeating several times Saturday that passenger and employee safety was — and is — the company's primary concern.
Also at CNN.
(Score: 5, Insightful) by Gaaark on Sunday August 12 2018, @03:42PM (2 children)
"Except what it SHOULD be doing is igniting discussion about mental health."
And so, in the real world of money, the discussion turned to having TSA agents fondle the nuts and pussies of mentally deranged people.... 'cos....money saved!
Too bad REAL solutions cost money and spending money on people doesn't matter unless it's the CEO's girlfriend/mistress/dominatrix. :(
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---
(Score: 1) by Ethanol-fueled on Sunday August 12 2018, @11:43PM (1 child)
I'm sure that if Rich had his nuts fondled by the TSA, it was only once for his initial inspection. People who work in public transportation are granted "security clearance lite" and later fast-tracked into an actual government security clearance if needed due to the background investigations they already cleared.
Hindsight is always 20/20, and even though this fellow dropped an airliner into the ground, he still scares me a lot less than most people with active security clearances working with classified technology. Now those are the true weirdos.
(Score: 2) by Gaaark on Monday August 13 2018, @12:00AM
Preachin' to da choir.
Vive la revolucion!
:)
--- Please remind me if I haven't been civil to you: I'm channeling MDC. ---Gaaark 2.0 ---