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Grounded By Val MacQueenFrontPageMagazine.com | February 4, 2004 At the beginning of January, BA 223 from London to Washington was canceled two days in a row due to “security concerns”.  On the third day, it was allowed to fly, but was held on the ground in DC for three hours after arrival before passengers were allowed to disembark.  Air France also had flights canceled at the 11th hour – specifically to Los Angeles -  probably at the demand of the American government, which had information that would have precluded allowing the flights to fly over American airspace. The truth dawned...

Heathrow terror puzzle · BA223 cancelled for second day running · Tension between US and British authorities · UN resolution may be at heart of alert Owen Bowcott, Steven Morris and Andrew Clark Saturday January 3, 2004 The Guardian (UK) British Airways grounded a fully-booked flight to Washington for the second day running yesterday, and cancelled another flight to Saudi Arabia today, as signs emerged of transatlantic tension over anti-terrorist precautions imposed by the United States. The decision to cancel flight BA223 from Heathrow to Washington was taken less than two hours before scheduled takeoff, when many of the 300...

BA cancels flights again for today amd Monday to DC and SA...

BA cancels flights again for today amd Monday to DC and SA...

<p>LONDON — The threat of terrorism has again disrupted international air travel, forcing British Airways to cancel flights yesterday to Washington and Saudi Arabia. But one top British pilot accused intelligence agents of "jumping at shadows."</p> <p>British Airways officials said that, acting on a warning from the British government, it had grounded Flight BA223 to Washington scheduled for Sunday, and its Flight BA263 to Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, on Monday.</p>

Concerns about terrorism have led British Airways to cancel two upcoming international flights, one of them bound for the United States. Cancelations are the latest in a series of threats to airline security. British Airways has canceled this Sunday's flight 223 from London's Heathrow Airport to Washington's Dulles, as well as Monday's flight 263 to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia because of concerns about security. Airline spokesman John Lampl offered no details about the nature of the threats. "Based on the information given to us by the British government this morning, we've taken that decision to cancel the flight on Sunday," he...

LONDON - A much-disrupted British Airways flight to Washington, D.C. has been canceled again over security fears, the airline said Thursday. advertisement BA said flight 223 from Heathrow to Washington's Dulles Airport would not fly on Sunday. Monday's Flight 263 from London to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia also was scrapped. The airline said the decision "follows government advice to cancel those flights for security reasons." Flight 223 has been delayed or canceled eight times this year because of U.S. security alerts. Saudi flights also have been canceled several times.

Intelligence indicating that al Qaeda terrorists are seeking to release a chemical or biological agent aboard an airliner, or transport a radiological device in cargo, prompted the cancellation of six international flights scheduled for today and tomorrow, senior administration officials familiar with the reports said yesterday. The possibilities, as described by three intelligence officials, include releasing an undetectable biological agent such as smallpox or anthrax aboard a plane that passengers would then unknowingly spread; releasing a chemical agent to debilitate the passengers and crew so the plane could be hijacked, and sneaking a radiological device aboard a plane inside a...

[old stuff snipped] One industry source said: 'There is a widespread and deep-held concern among British pilots that America is using these intelligence reports for its own commercial ends, maybe to even protect the very survival of its airlines.' The British Air Line Pilots Association believes the US is using Flight 223 as a political pawn, repeatedly delaying it because of BA 's reluctance to allow sky marshals on to its aircraft. 'There is suspicion the Americans are using the situation for more than security reasons,' said a Balpa spokesman. British officials refused to comment on the nature of the...

British Airways and Air France have cancelled a number of US flights amid fears al-Qaeda may be targeting them. Flights BA 223 from London Heathrow to Washington on Sunday and Monday are hit as well as return flights BA 222. A BA flight to Miami on Sunday was also grounded on security advice, as were four Air France flights. The US Department of Homeland Security said that it remained "concerned about al-Qaeda's desire to target aviation, especially international aviation". "The US intelligence community continues to gather specific credible threat information on international flights," it added. US officials said they had...

LONDON (AP) - British Airways (BAB) and Air France on Saturday announced the cancellation of seven flights to and from the United States because of security concerns. BA canceled four flights between Heathrow Airport and Washington on Sunday and Monday and one from Heathrow to Miami on Sunday. Air France canceled two Paris-to-Washington flights. There are no plans to raise the terror alert in the United States because of the latest threats, Homeland Security Department spokesman Brian Roehrkasse said. "We remain concerned about al-Qaida's desire to target aviation, especially international aviation," said Roehrkasse said. "The U.S. intelligence community continues to...

LONDON (AP) - British Airways (BAB) has canceled three flights from Heathrow Airport to Washington, D.C., and Miami because of government security concerns, the airline said Saturday. Flight 223 to Washington's Dulles airport will not fly on Sunday or Monday, but is to depart on schedule at 3:05 p.m. local time Saturday, said an airline spokeswoman. U.S. officials said Friday that new intelligence indicated Flight 223 and Air France flights from Paris to an unspecified U.S. city could be terrorist targets. Flight 207 to Miami will not fly on Sunday, she said, but had departed Saturday morning. The spokeswoman, who...

British Airways has cancelled three planned flights from London to cities in the United States for security reasons. Two flights from London to Washington (BA 223), on February 1 and February 2, and one flight to Miami (BA 207), on February 1, have been cancelled on security advice from the British Government. A BA spokeswoman apologised to customers for the inconvenience. She added: "The safety and security of our operations is our absolute priority and will not be compromised." A spokesman for the Department of Transport said: "Aviation security is kept under review at all times. "In the light of...

8:17am - John Portnoy, WMAL AM-630 news broke into "David Byrd" show to report that British Airways has just canceled three flights into the US today - one flight to Miami and two to DC (Dulles?). Sorry, that's all they said. Will listen for further...

<p>January 6, 2004 -- The United States launched a new program that scans fingerprints and takes photographs of millions of foreign visitors at Kennedy and other airports yesterday, hoping the high-tech measures will help prevent terrorists from entering the country. The $368 million identity-check program - called US-VISIT, or U.S. Visitor and Immigrant Status Indicator Technology - started smoothly at Kennedy as foreign arrivals told The Post they found the process relatively hassle-free and a small price to pay in times of terrorist threats.</p>

WASHINGTON, Jan. 4 — A senior British official defended today the recent cancellations of three commercial flights to Washington and Riyadh, saying that specific intelligence had provided "good grounds" for the decisions. Transport Minister Alistair Darling made the comment a day after a British Airways flight from London to Washington, twice canceled in preceding days, had landed safely at Dulles International Airport. The cancellations, and a United States demand that some international flights to the United States carry armed marshals, have raised tensions with British, French and some other foreign officials amid uncertainty over the reliability of United States information...

<p>LONDON — A British Airways (search) flight from London to Washington, canceled twice this week because of security fears, was delayed again on Sunday for security checks requested by the United States. The British transport secretary warned that security alerts could be a feature of international airline travel for years to come.</p>

Hunt for UK terror cell Hijack gang 'have British passports' Peter Beaumont and Antony Barnett Sunday January 4, 2004 The Observer Intelligence officials hunting Islamist terrorists suspected of planning attacks on British Airways flights believe they may be carrying legitimate American, UK or other European passports to try to beat airport security. According to US sources, last week's cancellation of the BA flights to Washington and Riyadh in Saudi Arabia was triggered by fear that terrorists with legitimate 'clean aliases' were planning attacks over the New Year holiday. The alert comes amid compelling new evidence of determined efforts by jihadist...

An Al-Qaeda suicide plot to hijack several passenger jets simultaneously — including a British Airways flight — and crash them into high-profile American targets has been uncovered by the security services. The American capital and nuclear power stations on the country’s East Coast are said to have been among the terrorists’ potential targets. The September 11-style plot explains the grounding of 10 US-bound flights across the world over the seasonal break. According to a senior intelligence source, an informant tipped off authorities the weekend before Christmas. He claimed that Islamic extremists intended to hijack flights operated by BA, Air France...

More flights from British airports are expected to be cancelled this week as MI5 and Special Branch hunt two al-Qa'eda terrorists thought to be planning a shoe-bomb attack on an airliner. It was this threat that led to last week's cancellation, two days running, of British Airways flight 223 from Heathrow to Washington. Officials from the security service MI5 believe that two Islamist terrorists are at large in Britain and planning to detonate a bomb in a lavatory of an aircraft. Flight 223 was finally due to take off last night, but government officials on both sides of the Atlantic...