Sea-Tac reviewing security after plane theft, crash

SEATTLE (AP) – After the theft of a 76-seat plane from the Seattle airport by a ground crew employee, authorities there are talking to counterparts around the country about how to prevent such insider security breaches.

Port of Seattle Commissioner Courtney Gregoire said Monday that what happened was “truly a one-in-a-million experience,” but “that doesn’t mean we can’t learn from it.”

She said the Seattle-Tacoma International Airport’s director and head of security have been talking with their counterparts elsewhere to assess procedures.

Calling himself “a broken guy,” a 29-year-old Horizon Airlines employee stole an empty Bombardier Q400 turboprop Friday night and flew loops and rolls before he was killed in a crash on a remote island outside Seattle.

Gregoire said that employees at the airport already undergo background checks and that the Port of Seattle had hired additional personnel even before the theft to do security screenings.