Pilot furious at U.S. for silence on bomb

[DieselDragRacer]

Editor's note: Steve Danyluk is an international first officer for a major U.S. airline and president of The Independence Fund, a nonprofit that supports troops wounded in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

(CNN) -- Following the attempt to bomb a passenger jet on Christmas Day, President Obama said that "once the suspect attempted to take down Flight 253, it's clear Homeland Security and Aviation Security took all appropriate actions."



I am a commercial airline pilot who was deep over the Atlantic flying from St. Kitts and Nevis for nearly six hours on Christmas Day following the attempted bombing on Flight 253.



I only learned about the incident after landing when I looked at the CNN Web site on my iPhone. I'm justifiably furious that I was not notified while airborne.


Our government clearly dropped the ball. President Obama has ordered a review into the intelligence failures leading up to the attempted Christmas Day bombing by Umar Farouk AbdulMutallab, but an equally important review needs to be made into how events were handled once AbdulMutallab attempted to carry out his plan.



Specifically, why weren't the actions the Transportation Safety Administration outlines in our aviation manuals initiated, and what took place inside the federal Domestic Events Network in the immediate aftermath of the terror attempt?


Following the 9/11 review, the DEN was given the task of instituting new procedures for controllers on how to communicate information about suspicious aircraft throughout the system.


The Washington-based DEN Operations Center is supposed to allow federal agencies with jurisdiction over the security of U.S. airspace to communicate information in real time. So why, after eight years and billions of dollars, was the information concerning the incident available to me only on my iPhone?


Like many commercial pilots, I flew in the military. There, each squadron maintains something called a pre-mishap plan. Basically, it's a three-ring binder with a series of actions the watch officer is supposed to take when a mishap happens.



It's a very useful tool -- but only if the officer who is assigned to carry out the plan is familiar with the binder's contents. Good commanding officers run simulated mishap drills within their squadrons to ensure their junior officers effectively execute the plan.


I'm left with the sickening sense that after 9/11, the government spent horrific amounts of money to create the "mother of all" pre-mishap plans, but never effectively tested it. Why? Because unlike the military, where commanding officers rise up through the ranks based on professional competency, our government operates on a different model.



How else does one explain the failed governmental response to natural disasters like Katrina, or man-made disasters like the Christmas Day bombing attempt?


The silver lining is that AbdulMutallab's failed attempt gave us that test of the response system. It can only be attributed to luck that unlike 9/11, this was not a coordinated attack involving multiple aircraft.



Now that the gaping holes in our response have been exposed, let's do a thorough review of what took place on Flight 253 and ensure we have professionals in decision-making positions who will execute the plan if this happens again.


The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Steve Danyluk.

 

[ableone]

Take it easy Steve.

 

[ultrarunner]

He's got a point Ableone. Take a good look at the TSA folks at the airport. These are the SAME people that are in Washington and are charged with protecting us and our airspace!

Bet you have a warm-fuzzy feeling now, don't ya!

 

[ableone]

I have a feeling that International Steve is one of those quick draw types just itching to release his inner security guard.

I am sure you know the type; The FFDO who hopes everyday that someone will breach the cockpit and allow him to show the word his badass side.

if he had known what would he have done differently? Told the flight attendants that if someone tries to set themselves on fire they should take it a little more seriously than usual.

 

[Whine Lover]

"Steve Danyluk is an international first officer for a major U.S. airline and president of The Independence Fund, a nonprofit that supports troops wounded in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. "



Well...Mr Danyluk puts his name to his beliefs in an International press release.

What have YOU done today? ( Whined about the lack of / quality of, your Crew Meal? )

We need to support people like this.


YKMKR

P.S. - YES. I do know the "Gunslinger / Barney Fife" type. I would rather have several thousand "Barney's" ...than NONE at all. As long as they weren't TSA morons....

 

[get2flyin]

I don't know about his airline, but at 15:30 local in LAS (30 min prior to push) on the 25th there was a note on our release. It said something to the effect of how "there has been an attempted use of an incendiary device on a US bound international flight" and to "exercise extreme vigilance". I called my wife who immediately turned on CNN, who was at that time still reporting that someone had tried to light fireworks.

I think our airline did a pretty fair job. Maybe this guy's airline just sucks. (shrug)

 

[GuppyWN]

Steve ought to first work through his union instead of sticking his head above the ridgeline.

I do, however, agree with his sentiment.

Gup

 

[Max Powers]

Let me guess steve is one of those FFDO guys that accomplished FFDO school because of a certain small appendage he has.

The morale to this story: we are and always will be vulnerable. From the date of your birth until your 80 birthday, you have a 1 in 800,000 chance of dying in a terrorist attack....a 1 in 80 chance of dying in a car accident.....a 1 in 100 chance of dying from the discharge of a hand gun. It always numbs my brain to watch the like of Fox news and your typical red neck uneducated pilot constantly obsess about issues that in the whole scheme of things, matters little compared to other issues.

 

[ableone]

Well...Mr Danyluk puts his name to his beliefs in an International press release.

I make statements to the media all the time but my press conferences are not well attended. ( I suspect a vast left wing conspiracy )

Seriously though I do write the occasional letter to Aviation Week under my own name. (So far they have published all of them)

What have YOU done today? ( Whined about the lack of / quality of, your Crew Meal? )

My crew meal was excellent today, thank you very much.

We need to support people like this.

I disagree

YKMKR

P.S. - YES. I do know the "Gunslinger / Barney Fife" type. I would rather have several thousand "Barney's" ...than NONE at all.

Good luck with that one. I am not excited to be in close proximity to your Barney Battalion but maybe it's just me.

 

[spitfire1500]

I have a feeling that International Steve is one of those quick draw types just itching to release his inner security guard.

I am sure you know the type; The FFDO who hopes everyday that someone will breach the cockpit and allow him to show the word his badass side.

if he had known what would he have done differently? Told the flight attendants that if someone tries to set themselves on fire they should take it a little more seriously than usual.

An FFDO can't carry a gun on international routes.

 

[spitfire1500]

Let me guess steve is one of those FFDO guys that accomplished FFDO school because of a certain small appendage he has.

The morale to this story: we are and always will be vulnerable. From the date of your birth until your 80 birthday, you have a 1 in 800,000 chance of dying in a terrorist attack....a 1 in 80 chance of dying in a car accident.....a 1 in 100 chance of dying from the discharge of a hand gun. It always numbs my brain to watch the like of Fox news and your typical red neck uneducated pilot constantly obsess about issues that in the whole scheme of things, matters little compared to other issues.

It matters little until someone succeeds and no one rides our planes in the aftermath and the furloughs begin!!

 

[JT12345]

It matters little until someone succeeds and no one rides our planes in the aftermath and the furloughs begin!!

Maybe the country needs to grow some balls instead.

 

[GuppyWN]

Let me guess steve is one of those FFDO guys that accomplished FFDO school because of a certain small appendage he has.

The morale to this story: we are and always will be vulnerable. From the date of your birth until your 80 birthday, you have a 1 in 800,000 chance of dying in a terrorist attack....a 1 in 80 chance of dying in a car accident.....a 1 in 100 chance of dying from the discharge of a hand gun. It always numbs my brain to watch the like of Fox news and your typical red neck uneducated pilot constantly obsess about issues that in the whole scheme of things, matters little compared to other issues.

And all this time I thought "those FFDO guys" spent their own money and their own time (on a continual basis) so that there is hope of slowing down or preventing an attack of their flight deck - or yours.

Gup

 

[SNAFU_AIR]

Sounds like someone is bitter they weren't accepted into the program.

 

[dbrownie]

And all this time I thought "those FFDO guys" spent their own money and their own time (on a continual basis) so that there is hope of slowing down or preventing an attack of their flight deck - or yours.

Gup

Gup;

We have the same type of idiots in our town who continually bash the local volunteer firedept, volunteer ems service etc. These are the crackpot old cranks (think grandpa Simpson) who yell at the television. People who contribute nothing to society but place high demands on others.

Db

 

[701EV]

Maybe the country needs to grow some balls instead.

When POTUS has no balls!

The United States has no balls!

 

[rumrnr78]

When POTUS has no balls!

The United States has no balls!

I am on a 6 night trip to Osaka so I flew my Wife up from Hong Kong. We are taking the train tomorrow to Hiroshima for the day. Just to see where "Little Boy" landed. I will be repectful at the museum but make no mistake I support the dropping of both the bombs! Because it saved American lives that didn't have to invade Japan. And, to remember when our "Lady Liberty" had a nice hairy pair!

Cheers-

P.S. How does Obama, who started his political career in the living room of an unrepentant terrorist, protect the country?

 

[waveflyer]

Good lord- conservatives are such blow hards. We are no less safe than a year ago.
The biggest security breakthrough we've had is to change our policy on whether or not to cooperate with the buggers. They'll need to book half the flight in order to get past the passengers- which is how this one got handled. If I'm in the back when something like this goes down- I'll lead the charge- bit the poster above is correct- terrorism should be handled- not dramatized- it's shark attack news- scary and dramatic- but the reality is we have much more to be concerned about on the freeway or when little johnny finds the key to the gun locker.

 

[AA717driver]

From what I heard, international flights at my airline that didn't have SATCOM did not get notified.

Any putz flying domestically can get an ACARS message. Int'l. is a different animal.

Regardless of your politics, we are woefully inadequate when it comes to intel and security and the blame rests squarely on politics. EVERYONE in the establishment plays politics with everything. No decision is made for the good of the country but who can get the most out of an issue by either supporting it or obstructing it.

The next successful attack? It's not "if" but "when".

TC

 

[ASADFW7]

I am amazed that people defend passivity. There are times to take action and be prepared Risk management predicts that when the lid is off the box that the percentages of another incident occurring is much higher. The writer of the letter has a point, there needs to be better communication and coordination when security risks are raised. During an incident is now regarded as a much higher risk period as predicated on actual events that have have been planned and carried out against the United States. These are now coordinated times, and coordinated measures are now needed to protect ourselves.

Reject Passivity people, it will save lives. Throwing this guy under the bus for drawing attention to the constant intelligence and communication failure of our governmental agencies is not just dangerous it is short sighted and irresponsible. If you think for a minute that national security is a joke there are plenty of places were we have failed and plenty of monuments to pay a visit to remind yourself people are out to kill Americans.

Now I am not a trigger happy right wing conservative, I am simply stating my opinion regarding how important it is to stop sympathizing with incompetence and ineptitude.