More Anti GA hysteria

On Thu, 26 Aug 2004 17:56:56 -0400, "Jeremy Lew"
wrote in ::

Courtesy of the Boston Globe:

http://snipurl.com/8oly


Given this excerpt from the Globe article:


Phil Anderson, a senior associate at the center who specializes in
homeland security issues, said the possible scenarios include
situations in which Al Qaeda members could use a small aircraft,
such as a single-engine, four-seat Cessna 172, to cause
catastrophe. One potential target could be a stadium packed with
tens of thousands of people.

''The no-fly zones over these stadiums are loosely enforced," said
Anderson.

Despite concerns expressed about general aviation after the Sept.
11, 2001, attacks, there are still no safety restrictions on these
smaller planes, no metal detectors or screening of luggage.

Anderson said terrorists could load a plane with explosives, add
shrapnel and possibly chemical or biological materials, and then
detonate a bomb inside a stadium.

''You just roll in low and go over the top of the rim of that
stadium and you can slow it down to about 45 knots so it's very
manageable, put it on the 50-yard line, and push the button," said
Anderson.

Any stadium could be a potential target. ''Just look at the
stadium where the Washington Redskins play," he said. FedEx Field,
in Landover, Md., seats more than 90,000 people. ''There's a
flight path that runs right by it and it's just right out there in
the middle of an open area, crimson and gold, just the perfect
target."

Perhaps the most rational approach to eliminate the "threat" this
scenario may pose would be to ban large public gatherings for the
remainder of the existence of the USA. And perhaps the think-tank
members who dreamt up these scenarios and provided them to the media
for publication should be held culpable in the event that one is
carried out.