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Do Airliners Have A Key?

TheSonntag From Germany, joined Jun 2005, 3347 posts, RR: 30
Posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 15 hours ago) and read 3367 times:

I am sorry if this has been asked before (I would think so), but do airliners have a key or anything which would prevent somebody just going inside, starting APU and engines and take off?

I tried the search, but didn't really find anything as key gave a lot of results...

12 replies: All unread, jump to last

2H4 From United States of America, joined Oct 2004, 8950 posts, RR: 62
Reply 1, posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 15 hours ago) and read 3366 times:

AIRLINERS.NET CREW
HEAD DATABASE EDITOR

Here you go, Sonntag!

http://www.airliners.net/discussions/tech_ops/read.main/96935

http://www.airliners.net/discussions/tech_ops/read.main/23467

2H4

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TheSonntag From Germany, joined Jun 2005, 3347 posts, RR: 30
Reply 2, posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 15 hours ago) and read 3363 times:

Thank you, I knew it had been discussed before...

Fokker Lover From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR:
Reply 3, posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 10 hours ago) and read 3253 times:

Quoting TheSonntag (Thread starter):
do airliners have a key or anything which would prevent somebody just going inside, starting APU and engines and take off?

Yes, on the older planes it's a huge skeleton key. About 40cm long and 20cm high. It's connected to the biggest damn rabbits foot you ever saw. The newer Boeings are connected to a giant remote starter button that flashes the lights and chirps when the pilots activate it. (It takes two pilots to use it because of the size.) Don't tell anybody, but we usually hide it under the mat.

2H4 From United States of America, joined Oct 2004, 8950 posts, RR: 62
Reply 4, posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 10 hours ago) and read 3248 times:

AIRLINERS.NET CREW
HEAD DATABASE EDITOR

Quoting Fokker Lover (Reply 3):
Yes, on the older planes it's a huge skeleton key.

Modern widebodies have progressed far beyond yesterday's skeleton keys:

2H4

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DeltaGuy From , joined Dec 1969, posts, RR:
Reply 5, posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 10 hours ago) and read 3238 times:

The thing that prevents people from going inside any airliner and firing it up is simply pulling the jetway back...the damn thing is so squirrly that it'd take a pretty determined soul to get it up to the jet so you could board Wink

DeltaGuy

Kaddyuk From Wallis and Futuna, joined Nov 2001, 4125 posts, RR: 28
Reply 6, posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 4 hours ago) and read 3177 times:

In modern jets no...

You will find keys in GA aircraft as they often sit in places accessable to the public...

An jet aircraft however sat on an airfield is in a pretty secure place and anyone who wished to "take" one would have to know what they were doing... Its not a matter of getting inside and just starting the engines...

Even if they managed to get airborne, it wouldnt take long before they were shot down by the airforce of the country they were in... (unless they were in a country that really doesnt give a f*ck)

Whoever said "laughter is the best medicine" never had Gonorrhea

MD11Engineer From Germany, joined Oct 2003, 13336 posts, RR: 64
Reply 7, posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 5 days 2 hours ago) and read 3147 times:

Actually many Russian airliners have locks on the entry and cargo doors. Also, the C-54 could be padlocked and the lower deck cargo doors were closed with a huge key, which doubled as a door handle.

Jan

Wing From Turkey, joined Oct 2000, 1552 posts, RR: 25
Reply 8, posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 4 days 23 hours ago) and read 3081 times:

Lets say one way or another you get into the airplane,alone.How do you think someone can take the airplane into the air?(Assuming that this person already has over 5000 hours on that particular airplane and lets say more he is a employee of that airline so he passed the security and did menaged to get into the airplane)

2H4 From United States of America, joined Oct 2004, 8950 posts, RR: 62
Reply 9, posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 4 days 23 hours ago) and read 3075 times:

AIRLINERS.NET CREW
HEAD DATABASE EDITOR

Quoting Wing (Reply 8):
Lets say one way or another you get into the airplane,alone.How do you think someone can take the airplane into the air?

This guy figured it out:

---------------------------------------------------------
Daniel Andrew Wolcott of Buford, Ga. has been charged with stealing a $7 million Cessna Citation VII from a St. Augustine, Fla. airport.

Wolcott was arrested after investigators interviewed five people who stated that they were on the flight with him when he flew from St. Augustine, Fla. to Gwinnett County Airport-Briscoe near Atlanta on Saturday. Wolcott lives less than 15 miles from the Gwinnett County Airport. A key is not needed to start the aircraft and the aircraft’s transponders were not turned on, so air traffic controllers were unable to monitor the plane.
---------------------------------------------------------

Source: http://www.aviationlawresources.com/html/news.html

2H4

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Wing From Turkey, joined Oct 2000, 1552 posts, RR: 25
Reply 10, posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 4 days 23 hours ago) and read 3065 times:

Actually I was referring how are you supposed to move an airline airplane on a major airport from a gate to the air without having a ground crew help you out and clearence delivery giving you a clearence (which must have a valid flight plan for that particular registered aircraft) and request a permission to move on the ground,tower etc..

But when I was typing these I remembered that when I was at Embry Riddle in 1999(if I am not mistaken) a CFI walked passed through ramp,started one of the Seminoles,actulally took off and nose dived to side of the runway to commit suicide.

A dedicated soul can do everything but it still is harder to do it with an airliner on a major airport compared to the local FBO.

HAWK21M From India, joined Jan 2001, 31201 posts, RR: 58
Reply 11, posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 4 days 23 hours ago) and read 3057 times:

Quoting MD11Engineer (Reply 7):

Actually many Russian airliners have locks on the entry and cargo doors.

Where do the store the keys.
With Security.
regds
MEL

Think of the brighter side!

2H4 From United States of America, joined Oct 2004, 8950 posts, RR: 62
Reply 12, posted (7 years 3 months 3 weeks 4 days 22 hours ago) and read 3051 times:

AIRLINERS.NET CREW
HEAD DATABASE EDITOR

Quoting Wing (Reply 10):
Actually I was referring how are you supposed to move an airline airplane on a major airport from a gate to the air without having a ground crew help you out and clearence delivery giving you a clearence (which must have a valid flight plan for that particular registered aircraft) and request a permission to move on the ground,tower etc..

Ah, gotcha.

I remember that Seminole suicide, too. What a shame.

2H4

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