Yesterday I was interviewed by Fox 13 Tampa Bay concerning the stowaway mechanic on a flight to Charlotte, North Carolina. Press the play button to watch the video below. Afterwords is an excerpt from the story on MyFoxTampaBay.com.
Was stowaway trying to get to work?: MyFoxTAMPABAY.com
TAMPA - A U.S. Airways mechanic is in the hot seat after stowing away on a flight from Tampa to Charlotte, North Carolina.
Authorities say the airline worker snuck in one of the cargo areas of the plane; then, when he arrived in Charlotte, he bought an employee ticket to complete his journey to Pittsburgh.
From all accounts, it appears the mechanic was a trusted employee: he went through a background check, went through training and had a valid identification badge -- so there was really no reason to question him when he showed up on the tarmac.
Airline employees explained what may have led to the situation.
"Lately, the flights have been so full you can't get on the plane," said Captain Carl Valeri, a commercial airline pilot.
Valeri commutes from his home in Tampa to his base at Newark Airport - something a lot of airline employees do. He says when flights are full and the crew seats are taken, you're basically out of luck.
Read more at MyFoxTampaBay.com
