British Airport security - the rationale

[David Guyatt]

http://www.emirates247.com/news/world/bo...0-1.310739

Bomb could have exploded in flight: Dubai police

Package came in from Sanaa via Doha; Operation bears Al Qaeda hallmarks; Parcel contained highly explosive PETN

By Mohammed Al Sadafy
Published Saturday, October 30, 2010

The explosive device was equipped with an electrical circuit board linked to a SIM card and the toner of a printer. (WAM)
Dubai Police have said that the bomb found aboard a FedEx plane on Friday contained the highly explosive PETN -- the same substance used by the would-be 2009 Christmas Day "underpants" bomber Farouk Abdulmutallab and 2001 attempted shoe-bomber Richard Reid.
Dubai police chief General Dahi Khalfan said: "This was a parcel bomb and a terrorist act could have occurred," adding that the device could have "exploded" on board the airplane had it not been intercepted in time.
The device consisted of a computer printer whose ink contained explosive material, connected to a mobile phone SIM card and a circuit board, a police statement said.

*

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-...plode.html

Ink bomb defused 'with 17 minutes to spare': Device at UK airport was ready to explode

By DAVID WILLIAMS, REBECCA CAMBER and STEPHEN WRIGHT
Last updated at 7:26 AM on 5th November 2010

The ink bomb found at a British airport was defused just 17 minutes before it was due to explode, it was claimed yesterday.
Al Qaeda planners believed the plane carrying it would have been over the Atlantic or the U.S. mainland when it was primed to go off in a Lockerbie-style attack.
But the plane made an unscheduled refuelling stop at East Midlands Airport because of the weight of its cargo. Such was the expertise of the bombmaker and the sophistication of the device that it took a bomb disposal expert seven attempts to establish that it was viable and defuse it.

One of the two mail bombs sent from Yemen last week was defused just 17 minutes before it was set to explode, France's interior minister revealed. Pictured, the cartridge found in a parcel intercepted by Dubai security officials

The parcel included explosive materials hidden inside the ink cartridge and an electric circuit connected to a mobile phone SIM card

The bomb hidden in a printer cartridge contained 400 grams of the powerful explosive PETN – 50 times more than needed to punch a hole in the aircraft’s skin – and was wired to a mobile phone.

The SIM card had been removed so it could not receive calls and the Yemen-based bombmaker set up either the alarm or timer functions to detonate the device.

*

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/t...olded.html

Cargo plane bomb plot: how the terror alert unfolded

The discovery of explosive devices intended for synagogues in Chicago on a cargo plane at East Midlands airport sparked an international terror alert. This is how events unfolded.

Late on Thursday night, an MI6 officer responsible for Yemen received a tip-off from a local source of a possible Al-Qaeda plot to smuggle bombs to America on board cargo aircraft.

*

http://online.wsj.com/article/AP4f251e2f...71c5b.html

Alerted to the plot by Saudi intelligence, security officials chased the two packages across five countries, trying frantically over the next two days to prevent an explosion that could have come at any moment.

*

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/t...ogues.html

Cargo plane bomb alert: explosive devices 'designed to harm US synagogues'
An international terrorist alert over a possible al-Qaeda parcel bomb threat to synagogues has been triggered following the discovery of a package containing explosive material at a British airport....

*

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-11659697

Bomb 'meant to explode on plane'

30 October 2010 Last updated at 20:59

The Prime Minister has said he believes the device found on board a cargo plane at East Midlands airport was designed to go off on the aircraft.
Earlier, Home Secretary Theresa May said the bomb was viable and could have brought down the plane if it had exploded.
It was one of two packages from Yemen placed on board US bound cargo planes.

----

First, they don't find a bomb at East Midland - then hours later they do find a bomb. The Germans allow the plane to depart their airspace even though their intelligence people have been alerted about explosive devices aboard the aircraft.

Next we are told the bomb was made safe just 17 minutes before it was set to explode - then Obama goes to the trouble to announce that there is no evidence to support this assertion.

Then we are informed that knowledge of the bombs resulted from a tip-off to an MI6 Yemen Desk officer from a "local" source - but others say it came from Saudi intelligence. Then it was targeted to harm US synagogues - but no, it was intended to explode in-flight - in which case why did the alleged bomber "red flag" it by addressing it to US synagogues? Is he a fool?

And was it connected to a mobile phone with its Sim card refused, or not?

One day they're al going to get their stories straight.

But those interested in pictures related to the stories I recommend they browse the linked newspaper articles (and others) from around the world - because the pictures differ to the same degree that the fundamental facts of the story so obviously are at variance.

The words "cock & bull" strangely seem to come to mind.