Air terror alert over 'squeaky clean' flier

The father of a "squeaky clean" former member of the United States Air Force spoke of his shock yesterday after his son was accused of sparking a mid-air terror alert which caused the flight to be diverted.
By The Newsroom
Published 28th Apr 2010, 23:58 BST
Updated 28th Apr 2010, 23:59 BST

Susan Elliott, a spokeswoman for Delta Airlines, said its Flight 273 from Paris to Atlanta, Georgia, was diverted to Bangor International Airport, Maine, where it landed safely just after 3.30pm local time on Tuesday. There were 235 passengers and 13 crew aboard.

US officials said air marshals intervened and the plane was diverted after Derek Stansberry, 26, of Riverview, Florida, claimed he had explosives in his luggage and a fake passport.

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Yesterday his father Richard Stansberry said his son had never been in trouble before.

"My son's profession in the military required he live a squeaky clean life," Mr Stansberry said.

He said said his son was in the air force for four years before leaving last year for a job in the private sector. He would not identify his son's employer.

US officials, who did not identify the suspect, said he was on active duty in the air force until last year. They would not reveal his rank or the type of discharge he received. His passport turned out to be authentic, they said.

Bangor airport is accustomed to dealing with diverted flights. It is the first large US airport for incoming European flights and has one of the longest runways on the East Coast.