September 1, 2001: American Airlines Issues Internal Memo Warning of Imposters

Around this date, American Airlines sends out an internal memo warning its employees to be on the lookout for impostors after one of its crews had uniforms and ID badges stolen in Rome, Italy, in April. [Reuters, 9/14/2001; Boston Globe, 9/18/2001] Later it will be reported that two of the hijackers on Flight 11 will use these stolen ID’s to board the plane. [Sunday Herald (Glasgow), 9/16/2001] On 9/11, a man will arrested with four Yemen passports (all using different names) and two Lufthansa crew uniforms (see September 11, 2001). [Chicago Sun-Times, 9/22/2001] It will also be reported that when Mohamed Atta takes a flight from Portland, Maine, to Boston on the morning of 9/11, his bags will not be transferred to his hijacked flight, and remain in Boston. Later, airline uniforms will be found inside. [Boston Globe, 9/18/2001] Boston’s Logan Airport had been repeatedly fined for failing to run background checks on their employees, and many other serious violations. [CNN, 10/12/2001]