Targeting the No-Fly Loophole
The Times Square case is sparking a flurry of activity from pols today, and one of the top targets is shaping up to be the no-fly list — which nearly let Faisal Shahzad fly. We’re expecting Sen. Chuck Schumer to weigh in later, but the first out of the box with a proposal is Westchester Rep. Nita Lowey, an appropriator on the Homeland Security subcommittee.
Her plan, which she cooked up after the underwear bomber got on a plane, is to require more than 30 minutes for airlines to announce their flight manifests to authorities.
“Reports that law enforcement officials were not aware of Faisal Shahzad’s travel plans until they received Emirates Airlines’ flight manifest 30 minutes before departure are only the latest reminder of the inadequacy of the policy,” said Lowey. “Had it taken more than 30 minutes for law enforcement officials to discover Shahzad’s name on the manifest, the flight would have departed.”
“It is senseless to arbitrarily hamstring the ability of our law enforcement personnel to catch terrorism suspects by allowing flight manifests to be disclosed a mere 30 minutes before a flight departs anywhere in the world, Lowey said.
“Airlines should be required to submit flight manifests 24 hours in advance of flights arriving or departing the United States, and to add to their manifests immediately individuals who purchase tickets within twenty-four hours of such a flight,” she said.
