Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Airport Terror Plot Detailed
By
Dave Hogarty
Published Jun 3, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Dave Hogarty
Published Jun 3, 2007
Modified Mar 7, 2008
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Law enforcement officials held a press conference Saturday to outline the details of the thwarted terror plot directed against JFK airport. The group of four men, three of whom were arrested yesterday, were planning on exploding the pipeline that carries aviation fuel to JFK. Their hope was that it would set off a chain reaction along the length of the pipeline, which is 40 miles long and runs through several residential neighborhoods, in a bid to kill thousands of people. They also wanted to plant explosives aboard an aircraft and in or near one of JFK's terminals.
One of the plotters lived in Brownsville, Brooklyn and neighbors described him to WABC as an older gentlemen who always dressed in robes like the one he was wearing when arrested. The FBI recorded him claiming that as a former baggage handler, he had unrestricted access to JFK's facilities. He apparently surveilled his potential target four times.
Officials are claiming that the successful execution of the plot would have resulted in the deaths of thousands of New Yorkers. The Daily News, however, writes that the owner of the pipeline and various security experts were doubtful that the plan could have been pulled off. While not willing to discuss the details, they said that there were definite precautions installed in the pipeline that would restrict the chain reaction these terrorists were plotting. And while some might be cyncical regarding the seriousness of the arrests, if the FBI said we caught some guys who were planning on simultaneously hijacking four commercial jets and then flying them into the Pentagon and the Twin Towers, causing them to fall, our first reaction would be "Yeah right, like that could ever happen."
Photograph of JFK Airport's storage field by Seth Wenig/AP
Tagged
airport
brooklyn
daily news
fbi
JFK
jfk airport
law
law enforcement
Neighborhoods
new yorkers
news
News: NYC
people
Seth Wenig
terror
the daily news
The FBI
twin towers
wabc
Dave Hogarty
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Queens man charged with hate crime at Jewish-owned bagel shop displaying Israeli flags
Prosecutors say the 22-year-old damaged property outside the Fresh Meadows shop twice in May.
By
Giulia Heyward
Published Oct 19, 2026 at 6:07 p.m. ET
MTA train yards are in such bad shape plants are growing out of the roof, watchdog says
In some cases, the damage was “clearly not recent."
By
Stephen Nessen
News
MTA train yards are in such bad shape plants are growing out of the roof, watchdog says
In some cases, the damage was “clearly not recent."
By
Stephen Nessen
High-ranking NYC officials to testify in ex-buildings boss Eric Ulrich's corruption trial
By
David Brand
Mamdani launches new team to help NYers keep SNAP, Medicaid benefits
By
Caroline Lewis
Riders at 53rd St. station where man was fatally shot say they worry about gun violence
By
Ramsey Khalifeh
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .