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CNN Live At Daybreak

Passengers Subdued Explosive Shoe Terrorist

Aired December 24, 2001 - 06:01   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.
SACHI KOTO, CNN ANCHOR: From now on, be prepared to hand over your shoes as well as your carry-on bags to airport screeners. The FAA announced its latest security directive last night. All U.S. airports are now required to add random shoe checks of passengers to the random bag checks.

The shoe screening follows an incident on a weekend Paris to Miami flight. A passenger allegedly tried to set his sneakers on fire. The shoes were later found to contain explosives. That passenger, tentatively identified as Richard C. Reid, is scheduled to appear in court in Boston this morning.

Officials say Reid's shoes contained two functional explosive devices. A flight attendant said she saw Reid light a match and try to set fire to his sneaker. She tried to grab the shoe and after a fight, which included several passengers, Reid was subdued. The plane was diverted to Boston and two F-15 fighters were scrambled to escort the plane to a safe landing. Afterward, passengers spoke to reporters.

(BEGIN VIDEOCLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Well I remember that 10 minutes after boarding the plane, my wife told me this guy is looking strange. I did not pay a lot of attention to it.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He tried to light up this matches to kind of like put his own shoe on fire and explode. And so the nearest passengers saw it and like grabbed him and tried to put him under control and after that we like tied him up with everything that we had like, belts from which -- belts from passengers.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: He didn't say too much, but what he did say, it was kind of like -- almost like riddles kind of leading you to just wonder, you know. Somebody else asked him what was the motive -- he just said we'll see. You will all see.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: My daughter was on that flight. There was never a point and time when I thought that there was a problem with her in terms of her being in physical danger. Yes I was more concerned about her emotional state, and I just knew that I -- I didn't think I would get to see her, but I thought I would feel better just being here. UNIDENTIFIED MALE: There wasn't a lot of panic actually. People were very controlled. I think it was maybe 10 minutes after that he had actually been taken in control, that there was the fear that maybe somebody else -- and yes, you could tell that the stewardesses were very, very worried.

They were looking around. They were very discreetly asking passengers who were seated near him if they had seen him with anybody.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's like you hear there is a huge fight with a -- with a stewardess screaming in an airplane -- what do you do? You're not going to think twice.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was kind of in shock, and then after a few more people got up and started to help, I got up as well, and then when I saw the smoke, that's when I started -- it was like a natural reaction of panic.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's pure instinct actually, because it goes so fast that you just react.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: The whole part doesn't really hit me until just a few moments ago really, you know, what the other outcome of the whole situation could have been.

(END VIDEOCLIP)

KOTO: And we'll find out more about the in-flight incident one hour from now when passenger Geoffery Bessin joins us for an interview.

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