A1FlyBoy
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HELSINKI, March 22 (Reuters) - A young man was caught trying to sneak explosives onto a domestic flight in Finland in the first such incident recorded in the Nordic country, police said on Friday.
Security officers at an airport near Finland's eastern border with Russia found 200 grams (7 ounces) of explosives, a fuse and primers in the hand luggage of the 19-year-old suspect when he entered the security check on Thursday evening.
"You can do serious damage with that (amount of explosive). If we think in terms of an aeroplane, it would become crumbs if this amount exploded," police officer Jorma Alvila told Reuters.
The suspect, stopped at Joensuu airport as he tried to board a Finnair flight to Helsinki, denied any knowledge of the explosives in his possession.
Police declined to comment on the possible motives of the suspect, who they said was a Finnish national.
Security has been stepped up at airlines around the world since the September 11 attacks on the United States, in which suicide hijackers rammed commercial airliners into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, killing some 3,000 people.
Since September 11, Finland's national carrier Finnair has begun checking all passengers on domestic flights.
Both Finnair and Alvila said the case showed current safety measures are effective. An airline official said it was not yet known if the incident would lead to tougher security measures.
Security officers at an airport near Finland's eastern border with Russia found 200 grams (7 ounces) of explosives, a fuse and primers in the hand luggage of the 19-year-old suspect when he entered the security check on Thursday evening.
"You can do serious damage with that (amount of explosive). If we think in terms of an aeroplane, it would become crumbs if this amount exploded," police officer Jorma Alvila told Reuters.
The suspect, stopped at Joensuu airport as he tried to board a Finnair flight to Helsinki, denied any knowledge of the explosives in his possession.
Police declined to comment on the possible motives of the suspect, who they said was a Finnish national.
Security has been stepped up at airlines around the world since the September 11 attacks on the United States, in which suicide hijackers rammed commercial airliners into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, killing some 3,000 people.
Since September 11, Finland's national carrier Finnair has begun checking all passengers on domestic flights.
Both Finnair and Alvila said the case showed current safety measures are effective. An airline official said it was not yet known if the incident would lead to tougher security measures.
