December 21, 2001: Shoe Bomber Misses Flight because of Long Security Checks, Explosives Not Discovered

Shoe bomber Richard Reid attempts to board a flight from Paris to Miami, but is delayed by security checks and misses the flight. There are several reasons for the extensive checks:
He bought his $1,800 ticket with cash three days previously. [O’Neill and McGrory, 2006, pp. 232-233]
He is bearded and “of Arabic appearance.”
According to other passengers, he looks “blank” and acts suspiciously. [Daily Mail, 12/24/2001]
He smells bad. [Mirror, 10/4/2002; O’Neill and McGrory, 2006, pp. 232-233]
He has no large pieces of luggage for a supposed holiday trip. [O’Neill and McGrory, 2006, pp. 232-233]
The small amount of luggage he does have contains two magazines, a radio, a cassette player and five Arabic cassettes, including two of verses from the Koran. [Mirror, 10/4/2002]
Ten days before, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) had issued a warning that radicals might try to smuggle weapons or explosives onto a plane in their shoes, but Reid’s boots, which contain explosives, are never searched. There are holes drilled in the boots and even a casual examination of them would make staff suspicious. After missing the plane because of the checks, Reid re-books for the next day. He then e-mails his al-Qaeda contacts, who tell him to proceed as soon as possible. [O’Neill and McGrory, 2006, pp. 232-233] According to an FAA source, this incident should lead to a warning in the FAA computer system saying that Reid should be detained if he again attempts to board the flight. The warning would ensure that Reid is questioned the next day and prevented from boarding. However, no such warning is issued. [Daily Mail, 12/24/2001] Reid returns the next day and is allowed onto the plane, but fails to blow it up (see December 22, 2001).