'Insider threat': How did a Horizon Air worker manage a commercial aircraft heist?
The suicidal man authorities said stole a commercial aircraft Friday from Seattle-Tacoma International Airport wasn't trained to fly, but somehow he managed to commandeer the 76-seat plane without anyone stopping him.
Officials from Alaska Airlines and Horizon Air said the man even had time to use a tractor to back the aircraft up and rotate it so he could take off.
For an hour, he performed loops in the air and other dangerous maneuvers that left airline officials and experts puzzled: How did a Horizon Air employee start the plane's engines, let alone make it past security and get into the air.
Aircraft aren't secured, personnel are
Commercial airliners aren't like cars: There isn't a key to unlock them or turn them on.
Airlines make sure the space in which the planes are kept is secure and the workers who have access to them have high clearance levels.
That was the case of the 29-year-old employee who worked for Horizon Airlines for 3½ years. He had multiple background checks, including a 10-year criminal check. He was "fully certified" to be on the tarmac and with the plane, according to Gary Beck, Horizon Airlines CEO.
His job was to handle baggage loading and tow aircraft. He had worked his shift Friday and was still in his uniform when he meandered over to a cargo holding area and hopped in the pilot's seat of the Bombardier Q400 Horizon Airlines plane.
The plane wasn't scheduled to be used that night, so additional safety measures for flight-ready planes, such as extra personnel attending the plane and locked wheels, may not have been in place, Beck said.
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Plane stolen from Seattle airport crashes into island
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Workers wearing yellow hard hats are seen at upper right from the air Saturday, Aug. 11, 2018, near Steilacoom, Wash., at the site on Ketron Island in Washington state where a Horizon Air turboprop plane crashed after it was stolen from Sea-Tac International Airport Friday. Investigators were working to find out how an airline employee stole the plane and crashed it after being chased by military jets that were quickly scrambled to intercept the aircraft. Ted S. Warren, AP
Officials interviewed people and examined footage to see exactly how the incident unfolded and whether anyone spotted him.
Complex machines
It's not easy to even start a commercial aircraft. There isn't a key or one button. Multiple switches and levers make the aircraft operational.
Airline officials suspect the man who stole the plane didn't have a pilot's license, which makes the episode that more puzzling.
Beck noted that, along with getting the plane off the ground, the man was able to pull off "incredible" stunts in the air.
"To be honest with you, commercial aircrafts are complex machines," Beck said. "So I don't know how he achieved the experience that he did."
William Waldock, a professor of safety science at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, said he was interested to hear what experience the ramp worker had because flying the plane would have required some knowledge for undoing several locks and brakes and starting the engines.
”Somewhere along the line, he had to figure out how to start it,” Waldock said. “Normally, rampers wouldn’t have any reason to be in the cockpit.”
Over tower broadcasts, the man told air traffic controllers that video games provided some help.
More: 'Suicidal' man who stole, crashed plane was 3½-year employee without pilot's license
More: 'Just a broken guy': Suicidal plane crashes exceedingly rare
"I've played video games before, so I know what I'm doing a little bit," he said. "Everything's peachy keen."
The bizarre incident highlighted one of the biggest potential perils for commercial air travel: airline or airport employees causing mayhem.
“The greatest threat we have to aviation is the insider threat,” Erroll Southers, a former FBI agent and transportation security expert, told the Associated Press. “Here we have an employee who was vetted to the level to have access to the aircraft and had a skill set proficient enough to take off with that plane.”
Southers said the man could have caused massive destruction. “If he had the skill set to do loops with a plane like this, he certainly had the capacity to fly it into a building and kill people on the ground,” he said.
Seattle FBI Agent in Charge Jay Tabb Jr. cautioned that the investigation would take a lot of time. Details, including the employee’s name, would not be released right away. Dozens of personnel were out at the crash site, and co-workers and family members were being interviewed, he said.
Authorities said there was no connection to terrorism. Though the incident was jarring, it was too soon to point to any immediate changes coming out of the situation.
“Safety is our No. 1 goal,” said Brad Tilden, CEO of Alaska Airlines. “Last night’s event is going to push us to learn what we can from this tragedy so that we can ensure this does not happen again at Alaska Air Group or at any other airline.”