On Sept 29, when I learned that the FAA planned to KEEP my CF memory card, I sent out emails to my Hawaii legislators (Senators Daniel Akaka & Dan Inouye, Representative Patsy Mink).

On Nov 7 I received a reply from Senator Daniel Akaka, including a very disturbing letter from the FAA concerning my case.

My immediate email reply to Senator Akaka follows:

 

Subject: Honolulu Airport: camera confiscation, Sept 16, 2001
Date: Fri, 09 Nov 2001 00:51:34 -1000
From: "Joel Aycock (www.nitwit.com)"
Organization: Keck Observatory, Mauna Kea, Hawaii
To: senator@akaka.senate.gov
CC: william.withycombe@faa.gov

Dear Senator Akaka:

I am in receipt of your letter dated 5 Nov, written in reply to my own email to you (30 Sept), concerning my experience at Honolulu Airport on Sept 16, 2001.

I want express my sincere gratitude, Senator Akaka, for your attention in this matter.

I must tell you however that I was astonished and alarmed to read the letter written to you by William Withycombe, Regional Administrator, US Dept. of Transportation, FAA, in response to your inquiries at that office.

While it is true that my camera and memory card have been returned to me in good condition, almost every other statement made in Mr. Withycombe's letter is incorrect or misleading.

I am not sure who supplied Mr. Withycombe with the false information that he has now passed on to you- I would hope that this is simply the result of natural human exaggeration, when the verbal description of an event is passed from one individual or agency, to another, and then yet another. A less palatable possibility would be if the exaggeration were a deliberate attempt to justify (via misinformation), what would otherwise be seen to be an ultimately unnecessary seizure and confiscation by airport security personnel.

Since Mr. Withycombe's erroneous statements are now part of your own record, and particularly since they may represent the "official record" of this event, I must register my very strenuous objection: the representation of this event, as expressed to you by William Withycombe in his letter, is not only misleading, but also simply untrue.

Senator Akaka- please excuse the length of this message, but I feel very strongly about the accusations and allegations made in Mr. Withycombe's letter, and believe that it is my duty to set the record straight. In that regard, I would like to determine whether the events of Sept 16 constituted an "initiation of legal action", and whether there was an "enforcement investigative report" (EIR) filed by the FAA- if so, I would like to exercise my rights as described in the Code of Federal Regulations, 14 CFR Part 191.3, to obtain a copy of that report.

I think that you would agree that misrepresentation of facts by Federal agencies, whether deliberately or through an error in communication, when communicating to our lawmakers and legislators, is a very serious matter.

I believe that the security officers directly involved in my detention and the confiscation of my camera were acting in good faith, according to their understanding of orders and directives in force during that tense time, and I have no further argument with the actual events of Sept 16 or the parties directly involved. I do object to the misrepresentation of those events, and to any official record that misrepresents the actual facts behind those events.

I am attempting to copy this message to Mr. Withycombe by email, but I have been unable to locate his email address.

I will quote from Mr. Withycombe's letter below, and then state what actually occurred, according to my own notes taken at the time of the event.

I would strongly suggest that anyone interested in the actual facts of this case should go directly to the original sources, for a true description. These sources would include myself (I was taking notes throughout the incident), and the AKAL Security officer who originally took me into custody, confiscated my camera, and wrote the confiscation report: Carlos Carrera. Also involved were Capt. Walters (AKAL Security), and two FBI officers (whose names I did not record). These were the ONLY people that I personally spoke with, or was questioned by, during my three hour detention.

The very BEST resource for anyone investigating this case would be the actual digital images as recorded on the memory card confiscated along with my camera. These images were erased from the memory card before the camera was returned to me, however I would expect that the FAA saved their own copies of these images- certainly that would seem to have been prudent, were the events as disturbing as described by Mr. Withycombe. The images on the memory card were recorded in a very common digital image format (JPEG), and could be accessed, copied and viewed in full resolution by anyone with a computer and a Compact Flash memory card reader (available for $25 at almost any computer or camera vendor). Since the FAA had possession of my confiscated camera and memory card for two weeks, I believe there was ample opportunity for them to fully examine and copy my images, for their own record.

Remember that during my detention, the only way to view those images was on the tiny LCD view screen of my Nikon camera. It is not surprising that personnel viewing these images on that screen would have difficulty determining exactly what was being portrayed. Viewing at full resolution, by downloading the images to a computer, would be required for anyone to make more than a guess at what was really there.

If these original images are still on file with the FAA security section, I would invite anyone interested to PLEASE examine them closely- I think you will see that my own descriptions (below) are much more accurate than those presented in Mr. Withycombe's letter.

>From Mr. Withycombe's letter:

1) "the camera and memory card were confiscated because the owner, Mr. Aycock, alleged that he did not know how to erase photographs he had taken at the security checkpoint."

Absolutely untrue. Deleting images from the camera is a very simple process, and I could have performed that task in minutes, had anyone asked me to do so. No one EVER asked me to delete the images, and in fact the camera was never in my possession after I was originally detained, so I could not have deleted them, even had I wanted to do so. I believe that I did offer to delete the images, when I was first taken into custody by Carlos Carrera (AKAL Security), in the hopes that I would be allowed to continue on my journey, and to avoid confiscation of the camera. My offer was not accepted.

2) "Photos erased included photos of Close Circuit TV (CCTV) cameras, National Guard personnel with the security checkpoint and other security activities in the background and a photo of instructions on how to operate the CCTV"

Untrue and misleading. There were exactly two photographs taken while I was at the Honolulu Airport Interisland terminal: one was of two National Guard soldiers walking down the public corridor, in front of the terminal restaurant area, conversing with each other; the other showed a lone National Guardsman on a cigarette break in the outdoor smoking area, between the main Interisland Terminal and the Aloha departure gates. There were NO security activities, checkpoints, or equipment included in any images on my camera.

The image described as "instructions on how to operate the CCTV" was actually a photocopy from a brochure describing a video device used to help the nearly blind read printed text (my mother has Macular Degeneration, and is legally blind). The page copied in the image contained a brief description of this device (not instructions for operation), along with retail prices and telephone numbers to call for further information. The photocopy was recorded by me more than a week before my camera was confiscated, and while I was at my parents home in Seattle. I repeated this explanation several times to Carlos Carrera, Capt. Walters, and also to the FBI agents, and urged them to download and view the images in full resolution, so that they could verify that this image did NOT portray security equipment of any kind, in any way. I do not know whether anyone ever did so.

I can supply another photocopy of this page to any interested party, and I quote here directly from that page (this text COULD have been read by anyone viewing that image in full resolution):

"Sometimes referred to as a reading machine, a CCTV is an electronic magnification system .... Magnification ranges from 6X to 65X ... Some units can also be used for writing letters or checks, viewing family photos, or looking at other small items such as a prescription bottle ... Community Services for the Blind and Partially Sighted recommends you speak with a low vision specialist and/or examine a unit before purchasing. For more information, product literature or a demonstration, call CSBPS at (206) 525-5556 for an appointment"

In summary: I can see nothing in 14 CFR Part 191 that applies to my actions or my photography on Sept 16 at Honolulu Airport. I accept the detention and confiscation that occurred, as a natural result of security tensions following the terrible events of Sept 11. I cannot accept or abide the characterization of my actions as portrayed by Mr. Withycombe in his letter to you.

Sincerely-

Joel Aycock
PO Box 1659
Keaau, Hawaii 96749
email: joel(at)aloha.net

 

I received another letter from Senator Akaka on Nov 13 (fast response!), indicating that he had filed a further inquiry with the FAA, and promising further correspondence regarding the matter.

Here are the original photos, recovered from my camera's memory card, for reference.