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| Iraq |
| Report: Djibouti Skies Dangerous for US Planes, Drones |
| 2015-05-03 |
| A published report says aircraft at the U.S. military base in Djibouti are often placed in danger because of hostile or lax civilian air traffic controllers who oversee the camp's runways. The Washington Post, citing military documents and federal aviation experts, reports that controllers at Camp Lemonnier in Djibouti have been seen ignoring air traffic while playing video games, making phone calls, sleeping or chewing the narcotic drug khat. It says the controllers have resisted efforts by U.S. consultants to improve their performance. In one case, a controller threatened a U.S. Navy officer with a lead pipe and threatened to "slit Americans throats" if he ever saw them away from the base. The Post says the situation has led to numerous close calls in the sky and on the runways, including a 2013 incident where a private plane carrying Djibouti's President Ismail Omar Guelleh almost collided midair with a Kenya Airways jet. |
| Posted by:badanov |