Despite urgings from Congress and the Sept. 11 commission, U.S. commercial jets remain vulnerable to suicide bombers, aviation security experts said. Fresh concerns arose about suicide bombings after Russian officials said Friday that at least one of the two planes that crashed simultaneously this week fell victim to a terrorist attack. Officials said they found traces of the explosive hexogen, also known as RDX or cyclonite, at one of the crash sites. The discovery raises the likelihood that explosives were brought onto the aircraft. Russian security officials are speculating that one Chechen woman with explosives boarded each plane. U.S. security experts said the latest details seemed to point to the possibility of a suicide bombing — a threat that airline security experts in the United States have long known they do not have sufficient means to prevent. One of the Sept. 11 commission’s key recommendations for aviation security is to screen passengers, not just carry-on bags, at checkpoints for explosives. Full Story
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