#include <std-guardian-disclaimer.h>
http://www.guardian.co.uk/terrorism/story/0,12780,1664147,00.html?gusrc=rss
Gerard Seenan and Giles Tremlett
Saturday December 10, 2005
The Guardian
Paul last saw the Gulfstream V about 18 months ago. He comes down to
Glasgow airport's planespotters' club most days. He had not seen the
plane before so he marked the serial number down in his book. At the
time, he did not think there was anything unusual about the Gulfstream
being ushered to a stand away from public view, one that could not be
seen from the airport terminal or the club's prime view.
But that flight this week was at the centre of a transatlantic row
that saw the prime minister being put on the spot on the floor of the
House of Commons and the US secretary of state, Condoleezza Rice,
forced on the defensive during a visit to Europe. The Gulfstream V has
been identified as having been used by the CIA for "extraordinary
renditions" - abducting terror suspects and taking them to secret
prisons around the world where they may be tortured.
The recording of flights by spotters like Paul from places as far
afield as Bournemouth and Karachi has unintentionally played a
significant role in helping journalists and human rights groups expose
the scale of the CIA's renditions system. But his impact on such
international intrigue largely passes Paul by. "It's not the CIA bit
that interests us. You don't even know who owns the plane when you
take down the serial number," he said, already distracted as something
comes in to land through the grey drizzle. "You keep accurate logs,
for your own records."
At the door of the shabby end terrace which houses the Glasgow Airport
Aviation Enthusiasts Club, Paul is considering how his hobby got him
tangled in such a complex web. "We know now that these planes are run
by the CIA, but it's not something we set out to know," he said. "I
have seen the planes land in daytime and I've seen them land at
nighttime. You never see anyone get off them. Most of the time they
are just coming in to refuel, but the ones coming in at night you
would expect to see people getting off. But you don't - at least, I
never have."
Broadly, planespotters fall into three categories: those who like to
take serial numbers, those who like to take photographs, and those who
indulge in both.
About 40 miles away, on a mound exposed to wind and rain near the
freight terminals of Prestwick airport, Stephen, lugging a lens more
commonly used by paparazzi lurking in the undergrowth, is setting up a
tripod waiting to see what will land today.
He knows it won't be as exciting as July, when the planes of G8
leaders and their secret service entourages landed at Prestwick, but
he's hoping for a good day.
"It's my day off, so I've come over to Prestwick, but I'll go to
Glasgow and Edinburgh as well," he said. "I do it mostly for myself -
it's been a passion since I was child - but I'll post good photographs
on websites too."
Stephen clicks the shutter. He doesn't think this one will make
airliners.net, his favourite planespotting website. But he'll add it
to the collection of hundreds of other plane photographs.
Despite the particular eccentricity of planespotting - and the obvious
capacity for fun-poking - it is not a pastime limited to Britain. In
Spain town planner Josep Manchado is part of a small group who gather
with their long lenses and foil-wrapped sandwiches at Majorca's Son
Sant Joan airport.
In January last year Mr Manchado saw a Boeing 737 on the airport
tarmac. He pressed his camera shutter button while speculating idly
that some US millionaire was in town. Then he put the picture of the
Boeing (tail fin number N313P) on airliners.net, and forgot about it.
Within a few days Mr Manchado starting getting strange calls and
emails. They came from the US and from Sweden. "People were asking me
questions about the plane. They obviously weren't all planespotters
because they were asking questions that people who know about planes
don't ask," he said.
Activists and journalists had become interested in the rendition
flights. There were also, however, strange calls. "One man wanted to
buy up all the photos. He eventually sent me a form in which he asked
for everything, including my home address. I didn't give it to him and
I never heard from him again," he said.
Months later, he got a call from Germany's ZDF television. A man
called Khalid El-Masri had come to them claiming he had been kidnapped
by the CIA from Macedonia, bundled onto a plane and taken off to a
prison many hours away. Several months later, after allegedly being
tortured, he was flown back and dropped in Albania.
One of the planes thought to be involved was one Mr Manchado had
photographed. It was believed that it had flown on to Macedonia that
very same day. With the photo in their hand, ZDF reporters were able
to persuade Skopje flight control to give them a printout of the
flight plan. The aircraft had gone from Palma to Skopje and from there
to Baghdad and Kabul. Mr El-Masri's story, convincingly told but
difficult to believe, fitted.
For those prepared to sift through the endless information complied by
planespotters and posted on websites, there are many more clues to the
CIA's activities to be found. In Ireland peace campaigners have turned
themselves into planespotters.
At Shannon airport Tim Hourigan uses a scanner that allows him to see
what air traffic control sees, and he, and other activists,
religiously note down the numbers of landing planes. Then, using a
combination of Federal Airport Authority Records and planespotting
websites, they can track the movements of intelligence planes across
the world. "It is a tedious job looking through hundreds of pictures
of planes," says Mr Hourigan, who is not a planespotting enthusiast.
"But it allows you to confirm and expose the activities of the CIA and
our own government."
ยท The planespotters have been given first names only, as they asked
not to be identified.
--
"Facts are meaningless. You could use facts to prove anything that's even
remotely true!" -- Homer J. Simpson
