NEWS ARCHIVES Oct 5, 2001
Phantom Flight From Florida
TAMPA - The twin-engine Lear jet streaked into the afternoon sky, leaving Tampa behind but
revealing a glimpse of international intrigue in the aftermath of terrorist attacks on
America.
The federal government says the flight never took place.
But the two armed bodyguards hired to chaperon their clients out of the state recall the
100-minute trip Sept. 13 quite vividly.
In the end, the son of a Saudi Arabian prince who is the nation's defense minister and the
son of a Saudi army commander made it to Kentucky for a waiting 747 and a trip to their
homeland.
The hastily arranged flight out of Raytheon Airport Services, a private hangar on the
outskirts of Tampa International Airport, was anything but ordinary. It lifted off the
tarmac at a time when every private plane in the nation was grounded due to safety
concerns after the Sept. 11 attacks.
Local and federal authorities will say little about the flight.
``It's not in our logs ... it didn't occur,'' said Chris White, spokesman for the Federal
Aviation Administration's regional office in Atlanta.
For private investigators Dan Grossi and Manuel Perez, the bodyguards on the Lear, it was
a trip they can't forget.
A Special Situation Grossi said Tampa police intelligence detectives called him about 11
a.m. Sept. 13, needing help with a special situation: They had been watching three young
Saudi men - at least one a student at the University of Tampa - at their south Tampa
apartment, and the trio was scared and wanted to go home.
Jim Harf, director of UT's international programs, confirmed one of them is the son of
Prince Sultan, the defense minister.
University spokesman Grant Donaldson refused to provide details. Perez said he understood
the men arrived in Tampa three weeks earlier to receive tutoring in English.
The Tampa detectives guarding the men were ordered to stay in Tampa by Police Chief Bennie
Holder, so Grossi was offered the job of escorting the trio to Lexington, Ky., where the
prince's relatives were buying race horses.
Lexington police Lt. Mark Barnard confirmed a Saudi relative had asked for help in getting
protection for the men in Tampa. Two off-duty detectives were assigned. Tampa police
records list Sultan bin Fahad as the one requesting the security detail.
But Tampa's official assistance ended at Raytheon's airport terminal.
``There was a perceived threat, and the family of the person wanted him home right away,''
said Tampa police Sgt. John Solomon. ``The job lasted about five hours. It was handled
very quickly.''
`Out Of A Tom Clancy Movie' Meanwhile, Grossi had put Perez on alert and went home to
wait. Both men provide security for the National Football League at Raymond James Stadium.
Grossi, who retired from the Tampa Police Department in August, has worked in internal
affairs and homicide. Perez, who has his own investigative company in St. Petersburg,
worked for the FBI for more than 29 years and has experience in counterterrorism and as a
bomb technician.
At 2:30 p.m., Grossi got the call from the police department. ``They said it was
happening,'' Grossi said. ``This was out of a Tom Clancy movie.''
Grossi said he was told the clearance came from the White House after the prince's family
pulled a favor from former President Bush. Prince Sultan, the Saudi defense minister, was
part of the coalition that fought the Persian Gulf War in 1991.
To the United States, Saudi Arabia is a key component in the emerging coalition of nations
in the war on terrorism.
The White House referred questions on the trip to the State Department, which denied
involvement, and the National Security Council, which did not return messages.
At Raytheon airport, Grossi met with the Tampa detectives who had brought the young men.
The Lear's pilot, who had flown in from Fort Lauderdale, introduced himself.
By 4:30 p.m., the twin-engine, eight-passenger jet lifted off.
``They [the trio] looked like typical college students with knapsacks,'' Perez said. ``I
didn't realize the prince's son was onboard until we landed.''
Grossi and Perez recalled the strange feeling of flying in the near-empty sky, knowing of
the ban on private flights.
``My first reaction to the pilot was, `We're not going to get shot down are we?' '' Perez
said.
Grossi said he spoke only briefly to the prince's son.
``He wanted to leave,'' Grossi said. But he also said he would like to return, Grossi
said.
In less than two hours, the Lear landed at the Blue Grass airport, where the passengers
were met by Saudi security officials, Grossi said. He and Perez saw several private 747s
parked on the tarmac with foreign flags on the tails and Arabic lettering on the sides.
Within the hour, the Lear took off again for Tampa with Grossi and Perez. Neither would
say how much they were paid.
But the Lear was not headed back to Fort Lauderdale, Grossi said the pilot told him. It
was bound for New Orleans to pick up someone who needed a ride to New York.
Grossi said he doesn't recall the name of the aircraft company providing the jet.
``Who knows who they really were,'' Grossi said. ``It was certainly somebody important to
obtain clearance to fly.''
Phantom Flight From Florida By KATHY STEELE ksteele@tampatrib.com Reporters Brenna Kelly
and Elizabeth Lee Brown contributed to this report. Published: Oct 5, 2001 |
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