Explosive device set off aboard airliner at Detroit Wayne International Airport

[davidbfpo]

I have been off-line for a few days so catching up and with a lot of reading today on this attack.

At the start (Post 4) I expressed surprise that the bomber waited till the approach to Detroit.

Bourbon's points (Post 11) are well taken, I just think an un-explained airliner crash mid-ocean provokes more fear than downing the plane elsewhere and of course complicates the forensic aspect (remember the Lockerbie crash would have been over the ocean if the plane had left on schedule). Even a crash over the tundra of frozen Canada would pose problems as those flights do fly the northern route.

Slap,

(Responding to Post 10). A crash at Detroit airport IMHO was unlikely, although the media footage would have been immense and if unexplained a gain for creating fear.

The analysis by Peter Neumann, ICSR @ Kings College, London is a good start: http://icsr.info/blog/INSTANT-ANALYS...irlines-Flight and and I recommend these two articles: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...l?hpid=topnews Which looks at the internet writings of Mutallad.

Secondly Steve Coll writes on a Nigerian article and the broader aspects: http://www.newyorker.com/online/blog...lmutallab.html

I would draw attention to the willingness of Mutallab's father to report his concerns to the US Embassy in Nigeria, the role of family information - distinct from that from the community or public - is often overlooked and appears to be downgraded by officialdom at times, maybe in this episode too.

The other issue is why AQ continue to pursue attacks on airliners, a supposedly "hardened" target; which Professor Bruce Hoffman has pointedly referred to in his lectures and writings.

Making sense of all the information available apparently before Mutallab boarded the flight is now obscured by the media furore and already I have read "a failure to join the dots up" a nice simple headline that does not help understanding.