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Field McConnell is convinced the 9/11 terrorist attacks are being covered up.

The Northwest Airlines pilot from rural Glyndon, Minn., said a second attack is imminent and conspirators already have aborted their plan once this year.

Those beliefs prompted him to begin writing for a Web site where like-minded people gather and to file a lawsuit in Fargo’s federal court to expose an alleged conspiracy.

The lawsuit, filed last week, claims Boeing Co. and the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) can’t assure him that B747-400 planes are safe. McConnell, who is the process of seeking an early retirement from Northwest, claims the planes are rigged by Boeing and can be remotely detonated.

“We do not believe in any way, shape or form that that is true,” said Pete Janhunen, a spokesman for ALPA, the world’s largest pilot’s union.

“Our senior lawyer and senior engineer both said that on its face, it’s an insane complaint. … It sounds like he’s a troubled guy.”

McConnell, a rural Glyndon rancher, has been a Northwest Airlines pilot for more than 28 years. He graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1971 and flew planes in the military, including with Fargo’s Happy Hooligans, for 22 years.

“I am obligated under company procedures and FAA regulation not to operate an aircraft if I suspect it is unsafe,” McConnell, 57, states in his handwritten claim.

Janhunen dismisses the claim.

“We take every threat to airline security and safety very seriously,” he said. “In this case, we do not believe there’s any shred of evidence that the allegations about these Boeing airplanes are true, and the case should be immediately dismissed.”

Many of McConnell’s allegations are outlined in Internet postings on www.hawkscafe.com, which its creators say provide an analysis of the weapons and motives behind 9/11. The group claims to have more than 4 million members worldwide.

“I think this lawsuit is opening a Pandora’s box,” McConnell said. “It will turn into a legal case that solves 9/11.”

He claims to know the true conspirators behind the 9/11 attacks and that radical Muslims served as a masquerade.

“If you want to know why I’m doing it, it is to make aviation safer,” McConnell said.

Boeing spokesman Tim Neale said each of its planes exceeds federal standards and undergoes rigorous certification before taking to the air.

“It’s (safety) something we take very, very seriously,” Neale said. “There are no safety issues that go ignored. There’s just too much at stake.”

Northwest Airlines denied comment. In the lawsuit, McConnell said the company and pilots union “have suggested that I am crazy.”

The lawsuit was filed on behalf of those working with the Web site, said McConnell, who previously filed for bankruptcy and seeks $4.5 million from Boeing and ALPA.

“I’m trying to retire early so I can do something more important than hauling 400 people to Hawaii,” said McConnell, who added that he wants to move to a warmer climate.

Readers can reach Forum reporter

Steven P. Wagner at (701) 241-5542

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