So what authority does the CIA have to order a civil transport to be shot down?
As far as I’m aware the rest of the World doesn’t take orders from the CIA…indeed neither do the domestic authorities in the USA I believe, since the CIA is not permitted to conduct operations on US soil.
FWIW, PLOC (prolonged loss of contact) is something flight crews deal with regularly, nothing sinister in that.
Any government that started shooting down civilian transports as a response to PLOC would find themselves out of office and in the dock in very short order.
The hi-jack tactic has been hi-jacked by those with vested interests…both politically and commercially. The days whereby 350 passengers sit idly by while a few would be hi-jackers try to smash their way through the armoured flight deck door ended on that fateful day a few years ago. I’d give them around 30 seconds before the rest of the passengers turned them into a stain on the carpet.
As a pilot I’m interested in looking after the safety of my passengers and crew from all dangers. That includes trigger happy government policy.