Expert Highlights 4 Potential Security Weak Points at San Jose Intl. Airport
The 15-year-old boy who stowed away on a flight from California to Hawaii in the wheel well of a 767 didn't just breach security by climbing into the plane, he also jumped the fence at San Jose International Airport and stayed on the ground for more than six hours without getting caught.
On "New Day" Wednesday morning, CNN Aviation Analyst Michael Kay walked through potential weak points with San Jose International's airport security plan:
#1) IS THE BARBED-WIRE FENCING HIGH ENOUGH?
Fencing is usually the first layer of defense in airport runway security, according to Kay.
At San Jose airport, there is six miles of fencing that reaches six feet tall, but "if someone really wants to get over that fence, it’s not inconceivable that they could have."
#2) SHOULD SOMEONE IN THE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL TOWER HAVE SEEN HIM?
Kay considers air traffic control towers the second layer of airport defense.
According to reports, the boy got onto the airport around 2 a.m. However, the tower at San Jose airport is only open until midnight – when no controllers were in the tower.
#3) IS THERE ENOUGH MONITORING OF SECURITY CAMERAS?
There are 200 cameras at San Jose airport, but officials do not have video of the stowaway getting over the fence – just video of a person they believe is the boy walking on the tarmac.
Kay believes the airport should put a higher priority on closed circuit camera monitoring, but adds, "there will always be some sort of blind spot. You’re never really going to eliminate everything."
#4) IS EVERYONE ON THE GROUND PAYING ENOUGH ATTENTION?
Just as the eyes in the sky should be vigilant, people on the ground such as caterers, baggage handlers and pilots, who already check the plane before takeoff, also need to be alert for security breaches.
While they may already be aware, "maybe the procedures and protocols need to be a little bit better," Kay said.
See MORE about the security at San Jose International Airport on CNN.com and watch the clip above to see Kay's full breakdown.
Runner Hands Out 260 Signed Notes to Boston Marathon Spectators
In today's edition of the "Good Stuff," an appreciative runner in the Boston Marathon thanks the people who cheered her on. CNN's Chris Cuomo reports.
Chrissy Yamada came to Boston from Seattle to run the marathon.
She was stopped last year at mile 25.
"In the summer, I started to think about what am I going to do to be thankful and grateful. That's all I can think of. Everyone's hurt. How do I help them heal somehow, some way?" Yamada said.
She discovered the way to give back was literally to hand out thank you notes, passing out 260 signed notes to honor those wounded last year.
See the full story at CNN affiliate WCVB and if you have #GoodStuff news, let us know!
Leave a comment, post on Facebook, or tweet to @ChrisCuomo & @NewDay using #NewDay and submit your story on iReport.
Currents Present Search Challenges for MH370
With a report of potential debris spotted a thousand miles away from the current MH370 underwater search area, questions arise about what's next in the hunt for the for missing Malaysia Flight 370.
Tropical cyclones could have had an impact on the movement of debris from a crash site, including strong Tropical Cyclone Gillian and the recent remnants of Tropical Cyclone Jack, reports CNN's Chad Myers.
On top of these systems, ocean currents and eddies can move debris erratically and scatter for long distances.
Watch Myers and Michaela Pereira explore what this new information means to what we already know so far about the search above.
Everest Avalanche: American Climber Recounts How Sherpa Saved His Life
To set foot on Mount Everest is to risk death. Mountaineering tourists and their native Nepali guides both have this on their minds, as they straddle cavernous ravines in the ice.
But nothing could have prepared American climber Jon Reiter for last week's avalanche, the deadliest accident in the history of the world's highest peak.
"We've all seen death on the mountains," he told CNN. But to see so many limp bodies hanging from cables as helicopters brought them down the mountain shocked him.
Reiter was one of the fortunate ones. His Sherpa guide Dawa shoved him behind an ice block, when the icy avalanche thundered down, killing 13 Sherpa guides Friday.
Three more Sherpas are missing and feared dead. Buddhist clergy commended all 16 souls Monday in a religious ceremony.
The search for those still missing has been suspended and it is doubtful it will resume, Nepalese officials said.
MORE on CNN.com.
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