Home Medical Factors Facing Pilots Aviation Stories Of Interest FAA Exam Aviation News Maintenance and Aircraft Mechanics General Aviation Helicopters
Aviation History Legal Issues In Aviation Links To Other Sites Editorials Hot Air Balloon Aviation Training Handbooks Read Online Upcoming Events Editorials

 



 
Engineer Sentenced 12 Years For Setting Fire To ATC Center And Cutting Cables
 
 

September 14, 2015 - A Naperville engineer who severed critical communication cables at an air-traffic control center in Aurora, causing thousands of flight cancellations and delays throughout the country, was sentenced on Friday to 12 ½ years in federal prison.

Brian Howard used wire cutters to sever multiple telecommunication cables at the Chicago Air Route Traffic Control Center in Aurora on Sept. 26, 2014, disabling the Control Center’s communication with critical data centers and in-flight aircraft.

He then set fire to the equipment to inflict further damage. The result was the immediate grounding of planes flying over the Midwest, and several days of flight cancellations and delays across the country.

 

Howard, 37, pleaded guilty in May to one count of willfully damaging, destroying or disabling an air navigation facility, and one count of using fire to commit a federal felony. In addition to the 150-month prison term, U.S. District Judge Gary Feinerman ordered Howard to pay $4,502,361 in restitution to the Federal Aviation Administration.

“Brian Howard attacked a critical piece of infrastructure in our nation’s airspace, causing one of the most severe disruptions to air travel in recent memory,” said Assistant U.S. Attorney Andrew Polovin. “He committed a violent crime that put thousands of lives at risk, and his crime warranted the sentence he received.”

At the time of the incident, Howard worked as an engineer for Harris Corp., a telecommunications contractor for the Federal Aviation Administration. This position enabled Howard to gain access to an area of the Control Center’s basement that housed key components of the Control Center’s telecommunication infrastructure.

 

 

Howard admitted in his plea agreement that by severing the cables and setting fire to the Control Center’s telecommunication equipment, he increased the risk to aircraft traveling through the Control Center’s airspace. He further acknowledged in the plea agreement that his actions were intended to disrupt air travel and to effectively shut down the Control Center. Paramedics arrived at the Control Center shortly after the incident and found Howard attempting to slice his own throat with a knife, according to a criminal complaint and affidavit. Howard told the paramedics to leave him alone, but the paramedics took the knife out of his hand and administered treatment, the affidavit states.

 
Other News Stories (For the latest news please checkout our home page)
 
 
 
blog comments powered by Disqus  
Home Aviation News Aviation Stories Of Interest FAA Exam Upcoming Events Links To Other Sites General Aviation Helicopters Medical Factors Facing Pilots
Maintenance and Aircraft Mechanics Hot Air Balloon Aviation Training Handbooks Read Online Aviation History Legal Issues In Aviation Sea Planes Editorials
 
 ©AvStop Online Magazine                                                                 Contact Us                                                  Return To News                                          Bookmark and Share  
 
 

AvStop Aviation News and Resource Online Magazine