Arson Investigators Probe Airliner Fire

Wall Street Journal ^ | JULY 27, 2009 | ANDY PASZTOR

[theFIRMbss]

Federal arson investigators have been called in to help determine the source of a fire inside the cabin of an American Airlines jet last month en route to Zurich from New York, according to U.S. government and industry officials. ...

* flight attendants used several fire extinguishers to put out a lavatory blaze

* air-safety investigators and law-enforcement officials are still trying to determine the cause

* The probe is unusual and has created a stir among air-safety experts, these officials said, because the airline initially asked U.S. law enforcement to get involved when mechanics failed to find the source of the flames

* Under U.S. law, the FBI and other law-enforcement agencies have authority to take over airline accident or incident investigations only if the Justice Department determines there is probable cause a crime has been committed

[theFIRMbss]

The story never
says the word "terrorism,"
or says "shoe bomber,"

or compares the fire
to other incidents. But
the ATF's there . . .

[stormer]

Occam's razor...

[theFIRMbss]

>Occam's razor...

The full article
contains a few more details
describing the fire:

American became suspicious when fire damage was discovered toward the ceiling, according to people familiar with the details, and the airline's security officials opted to safeguard the evidence and have law-enforcement examine it.

The twin-engine Boeing 767 remained grounded for several weeks while investigators inspected the damage, shipped off some parts for lab analysis and then mechanics replaced large portions of the lavatory. The water heater, for example, "didn't show any obvious signs of failure" when mechanics checked it and was sent to the manufacturer for further analysis, an FAA spokesman said last week. American said those findings are pending.

ATF officials declined to comment.