Talk of Shoe Bomb Brings Pilot's Arrest

[Khephra]

August 9, 2003, 4:14 PM EDT


NEW YORK -- An Air France co-pilot was in police custody Saturday after allegedly telling an airport security screener that he had a bomb in his shoe.

Philippe Rivere, 50, was arrested Friday night at John F. Kennedy International Airport, Port Authority spokesman Tony Ciavolella said. Rivere was charged with falsely reporting an incident and could face up to seven years in prison.

Rivere, who was to co-pilot a flight from JFK to Paris, was going through a security checkpoint when he allegedly said he had a bomb in his shoe, Ciavolella said. Ciavolella would not say whether Rivere was joking.

Police determined there were no explosives in Rivere's shoes, Ciavolella said.

more..................

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/wire/sns-ap-brf-pilot-arrested,0,7063445.story?coll=sns-ap-nation-headlines

[Cha]

1. A pilot should know better than anyone not to joke about such

matters, no?

I like your avatar! :-)

[Khephra]

2. I changed from the Pentacle

due to the influx of new Anti-Dean posters.

;-)

:hi:

[Cha]

5. I know you changed! And I was thinking it was something to

that effect! I like seeing it on your post! :hi:

The same thing happened to me, kinda! I had a "palm tree and Ocean view" and then something irritated me and I decided to get serious!

[NYC]

4. Perhaps he didn't.

Perhaps he said he did NOT have a bomb in his shoe?

What I heard on the radio was that he refused to take off his shoes, and then said he had a bomb in his shoe. I'm wondering if he said he did NOT have a bomb in his shoe, and was misunderstood. It makes more sense. (I'm wondering how much language was a problem.)

[Cha]

6. That could be! You never know how much things can get

confused even when the language is the same.

[Paschall]

7. Remember the scandal...

...over Gerard Depardieu's inaccurately translated remark that he had once witnessed a rape? The verb Depardieu used was "assister," which simply means he "saw" the rape. It was first translated as if Depardieu had assisted the rapist.

I think language was probably a problem here, too, and I have a very hard time believing this Air France pilot said he had a bomb in his shoe.

[pinniped]

8. Thanks for the clarification.

I recall hearing absolutely one story about Gerard and a rape. Can't recall the source from which it came.

The impression I got from the story was that he was an active participant.

[Paschall]

10. You're welcome

Depardieu was the victim of an extremely incompetent translator and an incurious press that didn't bother to check the story before running with it. The episode caused him quite a bit of hell.

About the Air France incident: When it was reported on TF1 (a private network) last night, the anchor slipped out of "objective mode" and described the American attitude as "paranoid psychosis."

[sujan]

3. idiocy

I refuse to defend his actions.

[0007]

9. We all say things with tongue in cheek at spur of moment

.....but to speak impudently in this situation wasn't the cool thing.

[Art_from_Ark]

11. Personally, I think he was incensed that they thought he

would have a bomb in his friggin' shoe. He's a pilot, fer crying out loud. With the possible exception of the Egypt Air incident, how many commercial pilots have ever sabotaged their own planes???

[soothsayer]

12. I'm with you, and as a funny person, I loathe the "no joking" guidelines

Just bizarre!

Hope this guy doesn't get punished because some meatheads are still mad at France.

What idiocy.

[MaverickX]

13. the same people who..

Bitch about this pilot getting in trouble are the same ones who bitch about the authorities "doing nothing" after a terrorist does attack a plane.

[Art_from_Ark]

14. So how many pilots have sabotaged their own planes?

Your argument is a strawman