Americans on no-fly list can learn to fly

Associated Press

WASHINGTON

U.S. citizens who are on the government’s list of people banned from flying because they’re considered terror threats are not prevented from learning how to fly in schools around the country, according to government regulations.

Such a person may have to drive across the country to learn how to fly a plane because he or she likely would be stopped from boarding a commercial airliner. But the security checks put in place after the 9/11 attacks will not keep the person from receiving pilot training.

The security loophole was raised during a hearing Wednesday to examine the Homeland Security Department’s programs to screen foreigners who want to attend flight schools in the U.S. Some of the 9/11 hijackers were able to learn to fly in the U.S. while living in the country illegally. The government put in several more layers of security after the attacks, and foreigners now receive criminal-background checks and are screened against terror watch lists before they are allowed to begin training. U.S. citizens, however, are not subject to the same scrutiny.

“I was stunned. That just caught me completely off guard, and I’m pretty angry about it,” Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Ala., said after the hearing. “Everybody should be concerned.”