RSS Feeds

Americans on no-fly list allowed to learn to fly

Wednesday - 7/18/2012, 7:51pm  ET

Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) - U.S. citizens who are on the government's list of people banned from flying because they're considered terror threats are not prevented from learning how to fly in schools around the country, according to government regulations.



"I was stunned. That just caught me completely off guard, and I'm pretty angry about it," Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., said after the hearing. "Everybody should be concerned."

The government has other screening requirements for someone to receive a pilot's license or other certificate to fly a plane which include criminal background checks and screening against terror watch lists. But Rogers said if the government doesn't want someone on an airplane because he or she is a terror threat, there's no reason why that person should be allowed to learn how to fly.

There are about 500 U.S. citizens on the no-fly list, according to an intelligence official speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive numbers.


"Keep in mind, the way the program is set up, there's layered security in place," Wilson said, adding that once someone receives a flight certificate, he or she is screened against other criminal and terrorism databases regularly. Wilson also cautioned that putting U.S. citizens through these additional security checks could cost more money.

This did not allay the concerns of lawmakers.


"We've trained them to do it. That's my concern," Thompson said.

Rogers, chairman of the subcommittee that held Wednesday's hearing, said he plans to raise this with the head of the TSA, and if the agency can't fix the problem, he plans to introduce legislation that would.

The TSA said it does not have the authority to do background checks on U.S. citizens who want to train at flight schools unless the person already has a certificate from the Federal Aviation Administration.

"In compliance with its statutory authority, TSA conducts background checks for foreign flight school applicants seeking training at FAA certified flight instruction schools and vets FAA certified individuals on a continuous basis," TSA spokesman David Castelveter said.

As it is, the TSA's program to screen foreigners has its own security loopholes, according to the Government Accountability Office, a congressional watchdog agency.


