Uit de AIAA Daily Launch van 2 maart:
Flights Delayed After Drunk Driver Breaches Fence.ABC World News (3/1, lead story, 2:50, Sawyer, 8.2M) reported, "A passenger plane was 15 seconds from touchdown, when air traffic controllers saw a strange Jeep barreling down the runway toward" the plane at the Philadelphia International Airport. According to accounts obtained by ABC News, "the jeep driver plowed through a construction gate only a few yards from the runway, and headed directly for the landing area." The driver, later identified by police as Kenneth Richard Mazik, was allegedly driving under influence. According to the ABC report, no explosives were found in the van.
The CBS Evening News (3/1, story 11, 0:40, Pelley, 6.1M) reported, "Controllers had to stop at least 15 planes from taking off or landing." Police say "it wasn't terrorism. The driver was charged with DUI."
The AP (3/2) reports that Mazik "faces DUI and reckless endangerment charges and will undergo psychiatric tests." According to Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Joe Sullivan, "there was no connection to terrorism and that the 1999 Jeep Cherokee came up negative when K-9 units checked it for explosives or other types of hazardous materials." Mazik's actions "closed" the airport "for about 30 minutes 'out of an abundance of caution,' said airport spokeswoman Victoria Lupica." Some 15 to 20 flights were delayed.
FOX News (3/2) adds on its website, "The Federal Aviation Administration says the airport was shut down for about 35 minutes after a vehicle drove onto the tarmac." The incident started around 11:00 am yesterday.
The New York Post (3/2) and CNN (3/2, Barnett) also cover the story.