Thursday, November 9, 2000

Story last updated at 9:31 p.m. on Wednesday, November 8, 2000 Cabin smoke and bomb threat on two Delta flights

By Dana Treen Times-Union staff writer

Cabin smoke and a bomb threat disrupted two Delta Air Lines flights Wednesday forcing one to land at Jacksonville International Airport and evacuating the other earlier in the day.

No one was injured in either incident, each involving flights to Cincinnati, a destination and departure hub for the airline.

David Stipe, 45, a computer analyst, was about 30 minutes into Flight 1940 from Tampa Wednesday afternoon when he smelled what reminded him of burning pizza.

"It was a little scary, especially when it started banking left," Stipe said, describing the aborted flight to his wife in a cell phone call. "It was pretty smoky."

Standing in a Delta waiting area at the airport, Stipe said he expected to reboard the same plane.

"There was a thick smell," he said. "They kept us well-informed, the pilot did a very good job. Everybody stayed very calm."

Crews from the airline were inspecting the plane after the landing, Delta spokeswoman Cindi Kurczewski said Wednesday afternoon.

The noon flight from Tampa carrying 140 passengers was aboard an MD-88, the same style of McDonnell Douglas aircraft that was grounded while bomb-sniffing dogs searched Delta Flight 720 headed from Jacksonville to Cincinnati, said Jeff Price, a spokesman for the Jacksonville Port Authority.

Price said the 8 a.m. flight was delayed after someone with the airline discovered a threat posted on an Internet Web site.

"Something online triggered them" to call for the search, Price said.

He said two bomb-sniffing dogs did not find anything aboard the plane.

Kurczewski said she would not confirm the threat and said Delta does not discuss security issues publicly. She said there was a security issue with the flight but that the 35 passengers on board were flown to Cincinnati on the plane after an hour-and-a-half delay.

http://jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/110900/met_flight.html

-- Doris (reaper@pacifier.com), November 09, 2000