A commercial airliner pilot, once a military pilot, reported what he thought was a missile or rocket passing roughly 150′ beneath his aircraft, which was traveling at 13,000-feet near Liberty County, Texas on Friday, May 29th at 8:15 PM.
As you can see by the map, this area is generally northeast of Houston, west of Beaumont, and north of the Galveston and the Gulf of Mexico.
From the Houston Chronicle on Monday:
Liberty County Sheriff’s officials are expected to meet with the FAA on Tuesday to discuss what a Continental Express pilot reported as a “missile or rocket” flying near his airplane.
At first blush, examined by those with no inclination towards an inquiring mind whatsoever — like most so-called “journalists” these days, to include the staff of the Houston Chronicle — this is a seemingly inconsequential story best shuffled off to page B9, far back in the newspaper.
I should care to tear apart this story and reveal to you why it is a story with much implication, and why someone apparently did fire a missile at a domestic airliner on domestic and sovereign United States soil.
First, some persons may be thinking the so-called “missile” or “rocket” may have been someone’s idea of a prank; that is, perhaps, a type of “hobby rocket” fired by kids or enthusiasts having come near a commercial craft.
Wrong. Read the article. The incident occurred at an elevation of 13,000 feet. The missile streaked under the aircraft, missing by about 150-feet. This is not “hobby missile” territory.
Second, where did this occur? What’s near the area?
Oh, only the Texas portion of The Chemical Coast. The area is packed with various refineries and railroad tracks servicing said industries, to include numerous plants in Port Arthur, Houston, Texas City, Pasadena.
Third, information now indicates that Air France received a bomb threat in Rio de Janeiro a few days before the Airbus A-330-200 departed for Paris.
One commenter in the original article wrote:
Do you really expect Homeland Security to divert resources from the “Great Tea Party Investigation” to check on a possible missile being fired at an airplane? Are you kidding? Didn’t you hear how those radical right wingers want the government to be more responsible with our money? I’m sorry, but if Homeland Security needs to make a choice between tracking down possible missile launches or trailing minivans with a Jesus fish and a FairTax.org bumper sticker, I’m going to have to say the minivans are the priority.
Is no one in the media possessive of a curious mind anymore? Did our government learn nothing post-9/11?
BZ
Fri.5/29 the pilot you mentioned doged a rocket, then June 1st the Air France plane went down and we are now hearing there was a bomb threat prior. In the article they state there is a good chance they will never know how it happened. It also states they are also puzzled as to how it could have blown apart in the sky. Then on the same day, 6/1 the soldiers at the recruitment center in Ark. killed by an extremist Islamist with a bigger plan, and more people may be involved? Sounds a bit fishy.
But, of course, when prior persons DEMANDED the dots be connected, we are to IGNORE the dots now. . .
Oh, especially if the dots involve Muslims. . .
BZ
I heard this last night, but had not heard about the bomb threat against Air France, but no surprise there.
Good analysis here BZ.
Did our government learn nothing post-9/11?
In a word, NO…
And here’s the real deal, we are on the verge of WAR, right here in this nation…
Here we go: http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jun/03/al-qaeda-eyes-bio-attack-via-mexico-border/?feat=article_top10_read
Foreign terrorists are not Obama’s enemies so they don’t matter.
Dots? I don’t see any dots. I see nothing, nothing I tell you.
A commercial airliner pilot, once a military pilot, reported what he thought was a missile or rocket passing roughly 150′ beneath his aircraft…
A shoulder-held missile?
I’ve read that national security personnel have been on the lookout for those types of missiles ever since 9/11. In fact, the area around Dulles International Airport is regularly scoured for those firing devices, which can be easily concealed in almost any car’s trunk.
At this point, the United States is in apparent denial as to the reality of what’s going to happen shortly. As Texas Fred has pointed out in his comment: we are on the verge of WAR, right here in this nation…
God help us.
Whoa! I didn’t know about that!
It seems that this is not the first incident of this type in the area. About a year ago the same thing happened. Some of the local media outlets are pushing UFOs.
I suppose theoretically a surface to air missle can be defined as a UFO.
Feel the debris lifted into the air… the storm is here… yet we are told to sleep as the winds rise.
The ground trembles in North Korea, an armistice revoked, yet none feature this… the storm is here.
Iran reaches for power as its refineries die and that will unleash far worse than nuclear rain… a spark to touch of a tinderbox and those flames will rise… rise with the winds… the storm will be hot and fiery.
King Canute of DC attempts to wash away history, even while lying about it… music to the savages who will use that against us… any reason will be given to grovel, to forgive the unforgiveable… and then the debris hits, the fires come, the sword falls and the storm goes on and on and on.
After horror untold there will be one option left. To grasp it will change everything, for that Sword also burns.
The writing is written.
Divided, fallen.
United, risen.
This too shall come to pass with a Terrible Swift Sword.
What?
“I should care to tear apart this story and reveal to you why it is a story with much implication, and why someone apparently did fire a missile at a domestic airliner on domestic and sovereign United States soil.”
How are you going to reveal something happened when it never did. There was no rocket fired at that plane. The pilot may have seen something he didn’t know what it was, but there was a “rocket” fired here a year ago, it must be a rocket I see.
I’m very familiar with hobby rockets and have build and flown some over a mile high. I know that any rocket that could reach the three mile altitude that plane was at would have been heard from miles away when it was launched. The police phone lines would have rang off the hook. The other thing is that those rockets do NOT leave smoke trails the whole way up. The smoke is gone by the time they have coasted half way to their peak altitude, nothing left to burn to leave smoke. If that pilot saw a smoke trail three miles high and still coming out of the rocket, he didn’t see a rocket.
I’m sure the pilot saw something, but it wasn’t a rocket.
The fact the media put it on page 3 may be some indication that the story wasn’t really creditable.
When you jump all over this as fact, this also speaks to your lack of knowledge of the subjects involved and shows your bias.
@bpmaker, The fact the media put it on page 3 may be some indication that the story wasn’t really creditable.
I don’t know if a rocket was fired at the plane or not, but are you actually saying that the press always reports creditable stories, and we can judge the credibility by the page the story is reported on?
I have several “if so” lines I can finish this off with, but I’ll give you benefit of the doubt, and assume you “misspoke,” as we say today.
Maggie,
You are correct, the page has nothing to do with how creditable the story is. What I was alluding to was how creditable the editor thought it was. If the editor has any doubt about the story, I can’t see it being on the front page, of course, that also depends on how many papers he/she thinks the story will help sell.