Explosives found on flight

BOSTON -- A passenger on a jetliner bound from Paris to Miami tried to ignite a possible explosive in his shoe Saturday, but flight attendants and fellow passengers subdued him, authorities said. The plane, escorted by military jets, landed safely in Boston.

The suspect, identified as Richard Reid, was taken into custody by the FBI. Officials said he was alone traveling on a British passport, which may have been fake.

A government official in Washington, speaking on condition of anonymity, said it had not been determined whether the incident was an attempted terrorist act.

"I'm told the flight attendant was drawn to him by the smell of sulfur from a lit match, and then challenged him as to what he was doing," said Thomas Kinton, interim executive director of the Massachusetts Port Authority, which runs Logan International Airport.

The flight attendant intervened after the man tried to light a fuse protruding from his shoe, and the 6-foot-4 Reid resisted and bit her, authorities said.

Passengers subdued him, belting him into his seat. Two doctors used the airplane's onboard medical kit to sedate him, and the man's shoe, which had protruding wires, was removed.

The incident, coming at the start of a busy travel weekend leading to Christmas, was bound to increase anxiety among airline passengers, many of whom have been reluctant to fly since the Sept. 11 terrorist hijackings.

The government and airlines have taken steps to tighten security aboard planes, including banning knives or other blades and increasing the number of passengers whose luggage is searched.

Two F-15 fighter jets escorted the plane, American Airlines Flight 63, to Logan, where it landed at 12:50 p.m. with police, fire and bomb squads standing by. The 185 passengers and 12 crew members were taken off safely.

"They X-rayed the shoe and found that in the heel, there were holes drilled, and there looked to be a detonator wire, and the substances consistent with C-4," said Massport spokeswoman Laura White.

The shoe was taken from the 767 jetliner, rendered harmless and taken to an FBI lab, White said.

The agency was continuing to examine the substance to see whether it was an explosive, according to another Washington official, who also spoke on condition of anonymity.

The F-15s were ordered into the air by the Defense Department, which since Sept. 11 has been in regular contact with the Federal Aviation Administration.

White House officials monitored the situation throughout the afternoon and President Bush received two briefings, spokesman Scott McClellan said. Administration officials also consulted with acting Gov. Jane Swift's office.

Swift praised those who reacted quickly after the suspect confronted the attendant.

"The flight attendants and passengers who helped subdue the suspect showed great bravery and poise in what was obviously a very dangerous situation," she said in a statement. "Their heroic acts may have potentially saved the lives of the nearly 200 people on board Flight 63."