Pilot's Laptop Missing: Yes, It's a Big Deal

I just ran into this story, going over last week's news: "Pilot's Missing Laptop Causes Airport Security Scare" (ABC 7 News (April 24, 2008)).

"A pilot's laptop, filled with top secret security information was reported missing at Dulles Airport and the ripple effects were felt across the country." Quite a ripple, too: 17 airports changed their access codes - fast.

Those codes would have given someone - anyone - access from the gate to the plane, and the pavement below the plane. These days, that could be a very bad thing.

The odds are that the laptop had been stored in an overhead compartment, one that passengers had access to, and then stolen.

There's the usual talk of 'cracking down' and penalizing people who lose data like this, but I'm not sure that's the right approach.

This time, the pilot reported, promptly, that the laptop had gone missing.

Would anyone be more likely to make a report like that, knowing that it would cost them money, and maybe their career?

I think it would be better to include common sense and situational awareness in pilot training.