Feds Simplify Security Plan

Contentious case likely to advance to Supreme Court

(NEWSER) - A case brought by workers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory could help determine a government standard for employee privacy. The rocket scientists have won a district court ruling against a Bush-era homeland security initiative that instituted background checks for all employees. The employees consider the checks not just intrusive but a reminder of McCarthy-era witch hunts. "These guys went to leftist meetings in the ’30s, did heroic science in the ’40s and were persecuted in the ’50s," says one plaintiff. More»

(NEWSER) - Big Brother alert: A data-mining system set up by the FBI ostensibly to catch terrorists is quickly growing into a database that tracks the comings and goings of ordinary citizens. The database has tens of thousands of records from private corporations, including some Wyndham hotel reservations, Avis car rentals, and even Sears credit card transactions, according to declassified documents obtained by Wired. The agency has requested access to more sources, including the change-of-address database and Social Security numbers. More»

Lufthansa to pay out if it rains at travelers' destinations

(NEWSER) - The German airline Lufthansa is offering “sunshine insurance” as an incentive for travelers to book tickets in the fall, Stars and Stripes reports. For travel in September in October, the airline will pay passengers 20 euros for every day that it rains more than 0.2 inches at the destination, up to 200 euros for one trip. The airline flies to most of the world's tourist hotspots, including New York, DC, Barcelona, and Venice. More»

Was headed to Paris from Rio de Janeiro

(NEWSER) - An Air France plane carrying 228 people to Paris from Rio de Janeiro is missing, the BBC reports. “We are very worried,” an official told AFP. “The plane disappeared from the screens several hours ago.” He said a transponder problem is possible, but unlikely. Flight AF-447, which was due in at 5:10am EST, is an Airbus 330, Reuters notes. Brazil's air force has reportedly begun a search and rescue mission near the island of Fernando de Noronha. More»

Investigators looking at Flight 3407 crew's records

(NEWSER) - The captain and first officer on the Buffalo plane that crashed were typical of regional airline pilots, the Buffalo News reports: They had far less experience than their counterparts on major airlines. No one interviewed blames either pilot for the accident, but Capt. Marvin Renslow, 47, and Rebecca Lynne Shaw, 24, had 5,623 hours between them. Contrast that with the 20,000 hours by Hudson hero Chesley Sullenberger. More»