Man arrested after allegedly getting into plane’s cockpit at Atlanta airport
By Chelsea Beimfohr
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ATLANTA, Georgia (WANF) — Newly released body camera footage shows Atlanta Police arresting Terence Stewart at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport Jan. 6.
According to an Atlanta Police report, a Delta airlines employee called 911 after watching Stewart drive away in a company vehicle.
The report says that Delta employee followed Stewart to a Southwest Airlines hangar where he walked into the cockpit of an airplane and spoke with a Southwest employee. Then he got off the plane and allegedly drove away in a second Delta truck.
Brent Brown, Chairman and CEO of Chesley Brown International, a security management consulting and investigative firm, calls this security breach alarming and says it could’ve had a much more violent ending.
“This person could’ve been up for more than just a joy ride. This person could’ve jeopardized aircraft. He could’ve placed something on an airplane that could be detonated at a later date. He could’ve caused mechanical issues to an airplane. He could’ve caused an airplane to go down. We don’t know really at this point what this person’s real motive was,” Brown said.
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport Director of Communications Andrew Gobeil sent Atlanta News First a statement that says employees followed protocol in this situation.
“Airport employees followed protocol as directed and challenged the suspect to present his authorized credentials, reported him to 911, maintained a safe distance while keeping him in sight, and provided information to Atlanta Police officers responding to the incident.”
“Securing airports like this are a huge challenge. I don’t want to take anything away from what it takes to secure them. But my goodness. This is several levels of breaching of security at one facility,” Brown said. “They’re going to have to look at every single point that was breached from the fence line, to the vehicles, to the hangars, to the aircraft.”
How Stewart got onto the gated property is still under investigation.
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