Small Plane Crashes Into Tampa High-rise. Terrorists?
- Thread starter Bartram
- Start date
unknown
New Member
I don't know about that........here's the story.
Plane Crashes Into Tampa Skyscraper
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - A small plane with a student pilot took off without permission Saturday, did not respond to orders to land from a Coast Guard helicopter and then crashed into a skyscraper, authorities said.
A law enforcement official in Washington, speaking only on condition of anonymity, said the FBI (news - web sites) does not believe the crash is related to terrorism but has sent agents to the scene.
The student left the St. Petersburg-Clearwater Airport in a Cessna 172 and then crashed into the Bank of America building, Coast Guard Lt. Lance Isakson said. It hit near the 20th floor of the 40-story building.
Air traffic controllers notified the Coast Guard helicopter that the plane had taken off without clearance, said Coast Guard Lt. j.g. Charlotte Pittman.
The helicopter intercepted the plane and attempted to give the pilot visual signals to land at a small airport, but the plane did not respond, Pittman said.
She said the plane was only a few yards from the helicopter when it was signaled to land. Pittman said she has no doubt the pilot understood what the Coast Guard helicopter was indicating.
Federal Aviation Authority spokesman Scott Brenneer said the plane was flown by ``a student pilot who did not have permission to fly the aircraft.''
Tampa Police Department spokesman Joe Durkin said there was no immediate word on injuries.
Tampa Police and fire crews were on the scene of the crash, which occurred shortly after 5 p.m.
Hijacked passenger planes were used to collapse the World Trade Center towers and attack the Pentagon (news - web sites) in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. A fourth hijacked plane crashed in western Pennsylvania.
Some of the pilots in the hijackings had been trained at Florida flight schools.
Bank of America, based in Charlotte, N.C., is the third-largest U.S. bank. It employs about 143,000 people and serves about 30 million households in 20 states.
Bank officials did not immediately return calls for comment Saturday.
Plane Crashes Into Tampa Skyscraper
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - A small plane with a student pilot took off without permission Saturday, did not respond to orders to land from a Coast Guard helicopter and then crashed into a skyscraper, authorities said.
A law enforcement official in Washington, speaking only on condition of anonymity, said the FBI (news - web sites) does not believe the crash is related to terrorism but has sent agents to the scene.
The student left the St. Petersburg-Clearwater Airport in a Cessna 172 and then crashed into the Bank of America building, Coast Guard Lt. Lance Isakson said. It hit near the 20th floor of the 40-story building.
Air traffic controllers notified the Coast Guard helicopter that the plane had taken off without clearance, said Coast Guard Lt. j.g. Charlotte Pittman.
The helicopter intercepted the plane and attempted to give the pilot visual signals to land at a small airport, but the plane did not respond, Pittman said.
She said the plane was only a few yards from the helicopter when it was signaled to land. Pittman said she has no doubt the pilot understood what the Coast Guard helicopter was indicating.
Federal Aviation Authority spokesman Scott Brenneer said the plane was flown by ``a student pilot who did not have permission to fly the aircraft.''
Tampa Police Department spokesman Joe Durkin said there was no immediate word on injuries.
Tampa Police and fire crews were on the scene of the crash, which occurred shortly after 5 p.m.
Hijacked passenger planes were used to collapse the World Trade Center towers and attack the Pentagon (news - web sites) in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks. A fourth hijacked plane crashed in western Pennsylvania.
Some of the pilots in the hijackings had been trained at Florida flight schools.
Bank of America, based in Charlotte, N.C., is the third-largest U.S. bank. It employs about 143,000 people and serves about 30 million households in 20 states.
Bank officials did not immediately return calls for comment Saturday.
unknown
New Member
Missed target?
Small Plane Crashes in Calif.
BUENA PARK, Calif. (AP) - A twin-engine plane crashed a block away from an airport Saturday, killing at least one person, authorities said.
The Cessna 337 Skymaster crashed in a vacant lot in a commercial and residential area, Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Stephen Miller said.
Miller did not know how many people were aboard the six-seat plane.
The pilot had been cleared to land at about 1:30 p.m. when air traffic controllers saw it roll over and crash about a block west of Fullerton Municipal Airport.
The plane knocked down telephone lines, crashed into a wall and exploded into flames, Miller said.
``The scorch marks indicate a vertical-type impact,'' Miller added.
Air traffic controllers said the plane was flying too high and with its landing gear up as it approached the airport, but the pilot did not report any trouble.
Miller said skies were clear and winds were light at the time of the crash.
Buena Park is about 25 miles southeast of Los Angeles.
Small Plane Crashes in Calif.
BUENA PARK, Calif. (AP) - A twin-engine plane crashed a block away from an airport Saturday, killing at least one person, authorities said.
The Cessna 337 Skymaster crashed in a vacant lot in a commercial and residential area, Orange County Fire Authority Capt. Stephen Miller said.
Miller did not know how many people were aboard the six-seat plane.
The pilot had been cleared to land at about 1:30 p.m. when air traffic controllers saw it roll over and crash about a block west of Fullerton Municipal Airport.
The plane knocked down telephone lines, crashed into a wall and exploded into flames, Miller said.
``The scorch marks indicate a vertical-type impact,'' Miller added.
Air traffic controllers said the plane was flying too high and with its landing gear up as it approached the airport, but the pilot did not report any trouble.
Miller said skies were clear and winds were light at the time of the crash.
Buena Park is about 25 miles southeast of Los Angeles.
Bartram
Brand HBCUbian
If So, I don't See What They Accomplish.
Mere coincidences. What could a cropduster have done to those buildings? Unless the cropdusters were loaded with some kind of high explosive or biological agents or "dirty bomb" (primative nuke or conventional bomb that disperses radioactive material), it doesn't seem like the MO of a terrorist strike. The plane in Tampa didn't even exploded upon impact. Surely a terrorist would have better thought out his plan than that.
I think all it is, is, everybody all paranoid about plains crashing into buildings. It's classic America. One story like the twin towers and repeated media exposure and the next thing you know, if a bird runs into a building,,, IT'S SOME KIND OF TERRORIST PLOT TO GET AT US WITH ANIMALS!
:lmao:
Mere coincidences. What could a cropduster have done to those buildings? Unless the cropdusters were loaded with some kind of high explosive or biological agents or "dirty bomb" (primative nuke or conventional bomb that disperses radioactive material), it doesn't seem like the MO of a terrorist strike. The plane in Tampa didn't even exploded upon impact. Surely a terrorist would have better thought out his plan than that.
I think all it is, is, everybody all paranoid about plains crashing into buildings. It's classic America. One story like the twin towers and repeated media exposure and the next thing you know, if a bird runs into a building,,, IT'S SOME KIND OF TERRORIST PLOT TO GET AT US WITH ANIMALS!
:lmao:
unknown
New Member
TAMPA, Fla. (AP) - The 15-year-old who crashed a small plane into a skyscraper wrote a note expressing sympathy for Osama bin Laden and support for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, police said Sunday.
The short, handwritten suicide note found in Charles Bishop's pocket said he acted alone, Tampa Police Chief Bennie Holder said. The high school freshman had no apparent terrorist ties, Holder said.
``Bishop can best be described as a young man who had very few friends and was very much a loner,'' Holder said. ``From his actions we can assume he was a very troubled young man.''
Bishop crashed the Cessna 172R into the 42-story Bank of America building after taking off without authorization and ignoring signals to land from a Coast Guard helicopter that pursued the plane. Bishop was the only fatality.
Holder said there is no indication Bishop specifically targeted the building or ``had any intention of harming anyone else.''
Investigators on Sunday interviewed the boy's family and said they would search his personal computer for evidence.
Bishop, of Palm Harbor, was told to check the plane's equipment before the start of a flying lesson Saturday, police said. He took off without waiting for an instructor who was supposed to accompany him.
A Coast Guard helicopter crew motioned for the boy to land but couldn't get a response, and a pair of military jets scrambled to intercept the small plane arrived after the crash.
``There was no doubt he died on impact,'' said Fire Department Capt. Bill Wade.
Fire department officials said damage to the building was limited to the office where the plane hit and small areas of adjoining floors. Most of the building was expected to be open Monday, though there was concern about chunks of the facade falling to the sidewalk below.
Images of the plane blasting a hole in the side of a skyscraper were chilling reminders of the World Trade Center attacks. Until it was pulled in early Sunday, the plane's tail had dangled from the 28th floor of the building.
In Palm Harbor, police unrolled yellow crime scene tape Sunday outside the apartment complex where Bishop lived with his mother, while detectives and FBI agents interviewed family members.
Julia Bishop, the boy's mother, told a camera crew to ``get out'' when they attempted to film her as she opened her door for investigators.
Bishop's grandmother had taken him to the National Aviation Academy flight school at St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport for a 5 p.m. flying lesson on Saturday, authorities said.
A Coast Guard helicopter caught up to Bishop over Tampa after he had traveled about 20 miles, and the crew signaled for him to land. Pilots said he ignored them, then crashed the plane into the building.
As a precaution, two F-15 fighter jets were scrambled from Homestead Air Reserve Base, 200 miles away, but they arrived after the crash, said Capt. Kirstin Reimann at the North American Aerospace Defense Command.
Only a few people were in the building at the time of the crash. None were injured.
Sheriff's Sgt. Greg Tita said there was no record of the ninth grader running into problems with the law in the past.
Derek Perryman, a classmate of Bishop's at East Lake High School in Palm Harbor, about 25 miles west of Tampa, said Bishop often talked about planes with a friend in their journalism class.
After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, he said, Bishop read a paper to the class. ``It was real expressive about how he felt, how disappointed he was,'' Perryman said.
Another classmate, Ross Stewart, 15, described Bishop as a ``teacher's pet.''
``I knew he was an honor student. He got straight A's,'' Stewart said. ``He seemed to like his classes. He liked school. He was a happy kid. He was never really down about anything. He smiled a lot.''
Neighbors said Bishop, who had moved from the Boston area a year earlier, kept to himself.
``He rode my bus to school. He sat in the front row. He always had sunglasses on for some reason,'' said David Ontiveros, 14. ``He never talked to anybody.''
Bev Pinkham, who lived near the Bishops in Norwell, Mass., said Bishop ``was just an ordinary quiet kid.''
``One day he came over and said my flower gardens were beautiful,'' she said. ``Other than that, he was very quiet.''
Michael Cronin, an attorney for the National Aviation Academy, said Bishop had been taking flying lessons since March 2001 and had logged about six hours of flight time.
He said the boy often cleaned planes in exchange for flight time and was very familiar with operations at the school. Cronin said students do preflight equipment checks on their own, then have their accuracy verified by an instructor. Bishop was a year shy of being able to fly alone and two years too young to earn a pilot's license.
President Bush was briefed on the incident and the White House officials had been in touch with Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge and the Federal Aviation Administration, said White House spokesman Scott McClellan. Two other small planes had crashed Saturday, one on a Colorado hillside near Boulder, and another in a vacant field near Los Angeles.
The short, handwritten suicide note found in Charles Bishop's pocket said he acted alone, Tampa Police Chief Bennie Holder said. The high school freshman had no apparent terrorist ties, Holder said.
``Bishop can best be described as a young man who had very few friends and was very much a loner,'' Holder said. ``From his actions we can assume he was a very troubled young man.''
Bishop crashed the Cessna 172R into the 42-story Bank of America building after taking off without authorization and ignoring signals to land from a Coast Guard helicopter that pursued the plane. Bishop was the only fatality.
Holder said there is no indication Bishop specifically targeted the building or ``had any intention of harming anyone else.''
Investigators on Sunday interviewed the boy's family and said they would search his personal computer for evidence.
Bishop, of Palm Harbor, was told to check the plane's equipment before the start of a flying lesson Saturday, police said. He took off without waiting for an instructor who was supposed to accompany him.
A Coast Guard helicopter crew motioned for the boy to land but couldn't get a response, and a pair of military jets scrambled to intercept the small plane arrived after the crash.
``There was no doubt he died on impact,'' said Fire Department Capt. Bill Wade.
Fire department officials said damage to the building was limited to the office where the plane hit and small areas of adjoining floors. Most of the building was expected to be open Monday, though there was concern about chunks of the facade falling to the sidewalk below.
Images of the plane blasting a hole in the side of a skyscraper were chilling reminders of the World Trade Center attacks. Until it was pulled in early Sunday, the plane's tail had dangled from the 28th floor of the building.
In Palm Harbor, police unrolled yellow crime scene tape Sunday outside the apartment complex where Bishop lived with his mother, while detectives and FBI agents interviewed family members.
Julia Bishop, the boy's mother, told a camera crew to ``get out'' when they attempted to film her as she opened her door for investigators.
Bishop's grandmother had taken him to the National Aviation Academy flight school at St. Petersburg-Clearwater International Airport for a 5 p.m. flying lesson on Saturday, authorities said.
A Coast Guard helicopter caught up to Bishop over Tampa after he had traveled about 20 miles, and the crew signaled for him to land. Pilots said he ignored them, then crashed the plane into the building.
As a precaution, two F-15 fighter jets were scrambled from Homestead Air Reserve Base, 200 miles away, but they arrived after the crash, said Capt. Kirstin Reimann at the North American Aerospace Defense Command.
Only a few people were in the building at the time of the crash. None were injured.
Sheriff's Sgt. Greg Tita said there was no record of the ninth grader running into problems with the law in the past.
Derek Perryman, a classmate of Bishop's at East Lake High School in Palm Harbor, about 25 miles west of Tampa, said Bishop often talked about planes with a friend in their journalism class.
After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, he said, Bishop read a paper to the class. ``It was real expressive about how he felt, how disappointed he was,'' Perryman said.
Another classmate, Ross Stewart, 15, described Bishop as a ``teacher's pet.''
``I knew he was an honor student. He got straight A's,'' Stewart said. ``He seemed to like his classes. He liked school. He was a happy kid. He was never really down about anything. He smiled a lot.''
Neighbors said Bishop, who had moved from the Boston area a year earlier, kept to himself.
``He rode my bus to school. He sat in the front row. He always had sunglasses on for some reason,'' said David Ontiveros, 14. ``He never talked to anybody.''
Bev Pinkham, who lived near the Bishops in Norwell, Mass., said Bishop ``was just an ordinary quiet kid.''
``One day he came over and said my flower gardens were beautiful,'' she said. ``Other than that, he was very quiet.''
Michael Cronin, an attorney for the National Aviation Academy, said Bishop had been taking flying lessons since March 2001 and had logged about six hours of flight time.
He said the boy often cleaned planes in exchange for flight time and was very familiar with operations at the school. Cronin said students do preflight equipment checks on their own, then have their accuracy verified by an instructor. Bishop was a year shy of being able to fly alone and two years too young to earn a pilot's license.
President Bush was briefed on the incident and the White House officials had been in touch with Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge and the Federal Aviation Administration, said White House spokesman Scott McClellan. Two other small planes had crashed Saturday, one on a Colorado hillside near Boulder, and another in a vacant field near Los Angeles.
DHJSU
Member
My take
My take on this was how do we know if this guy was really a supporter of Bin Laden. For all we know he could have been on crack or maybe have had some personal problems. So how many times have the OTHER race blamed their problems on something else. (like a supporter of Bin Laden). If you ask me I think they are just using that for a COVER up for what really was on this young person's mind.
:redhot: :redhot: :redhot:
My take on this was how do we know if this guy was really a supporter of Bin Laden. For all we know he could have been on crack or maybe have had some personal problems. So how many times have the OTHER race blamed their problems on something else. (like a supporter of Bin Laden). If you ask me I think they are just using that for a COVER up for what really was on this young person's mind.
:redhot: :redhot: :redhot:
Bartram
Brand HBCUbian
To You Unknown1
Duh? I'm talking about the paranoia of the general public always thinking everything is a terrorist attack now that we have had such horrendous events like on Sept 11. It's an over-reaction to every little thing that happens is what I'm talking about when I said, "paranoia". I didn't think I would have to spell that out.
To say that this misguided lad was/is a full-blown terrorist now that we have had a chance to take in all the news reports is doubtful at the very least.
Duh? I'm talking about the paranoia of the general public always thinking everything is a terrorist attack now that we have had such horrendous events like on Sept 11. It's an over-reaction to every little thing that happens is what I'm talking about when I said, "paranoia". I didn't think I would have to spell that out.
To say that this misguided lad was/is a full-blown terrorist now that we have had a chance to take in all the news reports is doubtful at the very least.
Bartram
Brand HBCUbian
Also Unknown1,,,
I heard a totally different take on NPR from people this kid went to school with and his mom's take. The general theme was that this was a kid that everyone liked and wouldn't every think he could do something like this,, his momz certainly was quoted as running the general, "he was a good boy" things that you usually hear after people do something like this.
This is totally contrary to some parts of these takes. The boy had some personnal problems and decided to take his life and the plain-into-a-building was a great way to go out given all the attention on such a thing right now.
I heard a totally different take on NPR from people this kid went to school with and his mom's take. The general theme was that this was a kid that everyone liked and wouldn't every think he could do something like this,, his momz certainly was quoted as running the general, "he was a good boy" things that you usually hear after people do something like this.
This is totally contrary to some parts of these takes. The boy had some personnal problems and decided to take his life and the plain-into-a-building was a great way to go out given all the attention on such a thing right now.
Bartram
Brand HBCUbian
Unknown1,,,,, you're incredible my man.
What the heck kind of point was that? Why don't you address the central issue/question here? Can you?
Let me ask you as clearly as possible:
DO YOU THINK THIS KID IS/WAS A TERRORIST?
PLEASE ANSWER A SIMPLE YES OR NO SIR. HOW HARD IS THAT?
Now, to your Timothy McVey 'good boy' whatever that was. This guy meant to take out people, AND HE DID! HE SPECIFICALLY MEANT TO TAKE OUT PEOPLE IN THE FEDERAL BUILDING BECAUSE OF WHAT HE PERCEIVED WAS AN INJUSTICE AGAINST THOSE IDIOTS IN WACO! He methodically planned that attack AND TRIED TO GET AWAY. He packed a freaking Ryder truck full of explosives for crying out loud! That is a terrorist act! How the heck you equate McVey with this kid, I have no freaking idea! .
Have you been taking in information on this kid in Florida? THAT WAS A SUICIDE BY A KID WITH PROBLEMS!
Again I ask you simply: DO YOU AGREE WITH THAT LAST ASSESSMENT OR NOT?
Perhaps you are getting my statements confused with saying this kid is a 'good boy' and should recieve sympathy and understanding. Is that your central point? I am not of that opinion.
What the heck kind of point was that? Why don't you address the central issue/question here? Can you?
Let me ask you as clearly as possible:
DO YOU THINK THIS KID IS/WAS A TERRORIST?
PLEASE ANSWER A SIMPLE YES OR NO SIR. HOW HARD IS THAT?
Now, to your Timothy McVey 'good boy' whatever that was. This guy meant to take out people, AND HE DID! HE SPECIFICALLY MEANT TO TAKE OUT PEOPLE IN THE FEDERAL BUILDING BECAUSE OF WHAT HE PERCEIVED WAS AN INJUSTICE AGAINST THOSE IDIOTS IN WACO! He methodically planned that attack AND TRIED TO GET AWAY. He packed a freaking Ryder truck full of explosives for crying out loud! That is a terrorist act! How the heck you equate McVey with this kid, I have no freaking idea! .
Have you been taking in information on this kid in Florida? THAT WAS A SUICIDE BY A KID WITH PROBLEMS!
Again I ask you simply: DO YOU AGREE WITH THAT LAST ASSESSMENT OR NOT?
Perhaps you are getting my statements confused with saying this kid is a 'good boy' and should recieve sympathy and understanding. Is that your central point? I am not of that opinion.