Man unwittingly takes explosives on jet in test

DUBLIN (AP) — A Slovak man unwittingly carried hidden explosives on board a weekend flight to Dublin after a Slovakian airport- security test went awry, Irish officials announced Tuesday.

Slovak Interior Minister Robert Kalinak expressed “profound regret” to the Irish government for the oversight and the three-day delay in alerting Irish authorities. Dublin security chiefs said it was foolish for the Slovaks to hide bomb parts in the luggage of unwitting passengers under any circumstances.

Security experts said the episode illustrated the inadequacy of security screening of checked-in luggage — the very point the Slovak authorities had sought to test when they placed real bomb components in nine passengers’ bags Saturday.

Eight were detected. But the bag containing about 3 ounces of RDX plastic explosive traveled undetected through security at Poprad-Tatry Airport in central Slovakia onto a Danube Wings aircraft. The Slovak carrier launched services to Dublin last month.

The Dublin Airport Authority confirmed that no incoming baggage is screened in Dublin. The man didn’t find out about the explosives cache until Irish police, acting on a Slovak tip-off, raided his inner-city apartment Tuesday morning.