Assorted Aviation Problems

Yesterday proved quite a headache for commercial airlines. There were no fewer than seven incidents disrupting air travel and infusing more tension into an already tense aviation environment. Evan reported on the Aer Lingus incident yesterday morning, but following that story, a much scarier one emerged from Continental Airlines. Security officials found a stick of dynamite in a Pennsylvania student's luggage--he had traveled from Argentina to Houston and claimed to work in mining. He wasn't deemed a terrorist threat, but one expert pointed out that an old stick of dynamite, whatever its owner's intentions, could easily create an explosion under pressurized conditions. The incident raises more concerns about the tightness of security overseas, particularly in South America. Yesterday's other delays and diversions owed to unruly passengers--and here I thought all the crazies rode Amtrak--and to suspicious on-board modifications (including a panel missing from a lavatory). Such stories will be legion in the coming weeks, and I'll keep you posted as best I can.