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American Morning
Olympic Security Takes to Air
Aired February 08, 2002 - 08:09 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
PAULA ZAHN, CNN ANCHOR: The huge security effort at the Olympics isn't just focused on the ground. Our Kathleen Koch turned her eyes to the skies.
(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)
KATHLEEN KOCH, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): They were the enforcers, U.S. Customs Service Blackhawk helicopters, half a dozen patrolling the skies over the Olympic venues.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Nobody in this airspace except law enforcement, military and EMS aircraft would be allowed in here.
KOCH: Far from their normal mission nabbing drug smugglers on the southern U.S. border.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The drug interdiction business, we do a covert intercept, where we try not to let the drug smuggler know we are behind them. We let them go in and land, in other words drop their drugs, and then we swoop in and do an arrest on them. Here, it's an overt intercept, where we want them to know we are here. We want to get their attention, and we want to divert them away from the Olympic venue sites.
KOCH: Half an hour into the flight, radar picks up a violator.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The violator is now bearing 260 at 4 miles...
KOCH: A small twin-engine plane flying over Soldier Hollow, site of the cross country skiing competition, and the Olympic Village. The chase begins.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: But keep your eyes out for him. I don't know where this guy is at.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Oh, is that him?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Probably.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There he is on my nose.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Above or below?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He is below us. He is going to come up on the left side.
KOCH: An air traffic controller contacts the rogue pilot on radio telling him he has violated the Olympic no-fly zone.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: You make sure you know exactly where it's at and how to stay out of it.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well, I'm not exactly sure. I am not familiar with the area here, but I presume I am out of it at this time.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: All right. You are out of it now, but you -- if you are not familiar, you need to make sure you are familiar, because you will be met with some F-16s and possibly get your license taken away.
KOCH: Meeting him this time, the Blackhawk.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We've got the aircraft landing on short and final. We are coming behind him. Do you have anybody on the ground?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The (UNINTELLIGIBLE) pilot of Secret Service arrived.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We need to get you to shut the aircraft down right there at that location.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right here?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's affirmative.
KOCH: Cautious, a Customs Agent with a submachine gun approached the plane, questions the pilot. Within 15 minutes, local law enforcement arrive and take custody of the man.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He was unaware of the restricted airspace here around the Olympic venues, bringing an aircraft from Grand Junction, and very apologetic, and we often -- typical of the kind of people that often make those kinds of mistakes.
KOCH: In less than an hour, the incident is over, marking the 10th time a plane has flown into the off-limits airspace over Salt Lake City.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Although intimidation is not what we are here for, sometimes you just have to get people's attention, and this aircraft is very good at doing that.
KOCH: Kathleen Koch, CNN, Salt Lake City.
(END VIDEOTAPE)
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