By Patti Johnson - February 16, 2026

After reading an editorial by Robert Spencer, February 12, 2026, titled “Canada: Muslim who supports Hamas and Hezbollah handles bags and works on aircraft maintenance at Toronto airport,” I am compelled to expose similar vulnerabilities right here in the United States. Individuals with potential ties to terrorism or radical sympathies have repeatedly gained or exploited access to our airports’ most sensitive areas. The safety implications could not be more dire.

In his editorial, Spencer highlights the shocking case of Sammy Allouba, who openly supports Hamas and Hezbollah, both U.S.-designated foreign terrorist organizations responsible for countless bombings, rocket attacks, kidnappings, and murders, while holding a job that gives him unrestricted access to passenger baggage and aircraft maintenance systems at Toronto’s airport. This creates a clear and present danger of catastrophic sabotage, such as planting explosives in luggage, tampering with critical flight controls, navigation equipment, or fuel systems, or leaking sensitive operational details to external threats. Such insider access bypasses external security layers entirely and turns aviation’s trusted workforce into a potential vector for mass murder. Spencer drives the point home with biting sarcasm in his closing question: “What could possibly go wrong? Celebrate diversity.” [1]

If background checks, continuous monitoring, and threat assessments fail to identify or remove individuals who openly broadcast support for designated terrorist groups, as appears to have occurred in this recent Canadian case, our entire commercial aviation system remains dangerously vulnerable.

Aviation has long been a prime target for jihadist plots aimed at mass casualties. In the 1980s, as a flight attendant, I received specialized training on handling hijackings, including procedures for safely relocating a bomb if one was discovered onboard. One of the airlines I worked for was TWA, which conducted thorough reviews of the infamous TWA Flight 847 hijacking. That ordeal lasted 17 days and ended with the brutal murder of U.S. Navy diver Robert Stethem, who was beaten, shot, and thrown onto the Beirut airport tarmac.

This is no hypothetical risk. U.S. history includes several recent terrifying insider incidents that highlight the lethal potential. These are not isolated anomalies. Reports from the TSA, DHS, and experts repeatedly warn of “insider threats” in aviation.

Below are just a few of many reported incidents . . .

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