He had no means of income and took flight lessons while in the US illegally. Obviously this is another case of discrimination and profiling. “Alert issued for ex-flight school student,” from CNN, with thanks to Teri:
The man, Zayed Christopher Hajaig, has been located in the United Kingdom, said Steve Emmett, a special agent with the FBI in Atlanta.
Hajaig has not been taken into custody, Emmett said, but the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has been alerted, and his name has been placed on a “no-fly” list….
Hajaig took lessons at a flight school near Atlanta in Gwinnett County, Emmett said.
Someone from the school alerted authorities when Hajaig attempted to have his instructor upgrade his flight rating when he wasn’t yet qualified, he said. Emmett also said Hajaig attempted to have the flight school accelerate his training schedule.
“All flight schools after 9/11 have been asked to increase their state of alertness,” Emmett said. “They’ve been asked to report any suspicious behavior. This is what happened in this case.”
The Atlanta Joint Terrorism Task Force and U.S. Immigration Customs and Enforcement said Hajaig was in the United States illegally. He had no means of income, used calling cards to communicate with associates and fled to Britain possibly when he was alerted to the task force’s interest in him, Emmett said.
Two of the hijackers involved in the 9/11 attacks trained for a time at the same airport where Hajaig took lessons — Gwinnett County Airport-Briscoe Field, according to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.