Suspect's gun jammed during airport shootings

[Malsua 1,422]

Anyone shot an FNP 9? I'm assuming that's what he had, it could have been a HP MKIII.

 

Can't say I have shot either. I've not heard if they're prone to limp wrist jamming or something.

 

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http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/41902481/ns/world_news-europe/

 

KARLSRUHE, Germany — U.S. Senior Airman Nicholas J. Alden was standing outside of a bus at Frankfurt airport when a young man first asked him for a cigarette, then whether he was bound for Afghanistan.

 

When Alden answered yes, the man fatally shot him, point blank, in the back of the head, then stormed aboard the bus shouting "Allah Akbar" — Arabic for "God is great." He shot and killed Airman 1st Class Zachary R. Cuddeback, who was at the wheel, then shot and injured two others, German authorities said Friday.

 

The gunman, identified as Arid Uka, a 21-year-old Kosovo Albanian, then pointed his FN 9mm pistol at yet another airman seated on the bus. "He pointed his pistol at his head and pulled the trigger twice, but the pistol jammed and no shots came out," prosecutor Rainer Griesbaum told reporters in Karlsruhe.

 

Jammed, empty shell casings prevented the weapon from firing again.

 

Uka, who was raised and schooled in Germany, refused to speak Thursday when brought before a judge and formally charged with two counts of murder and three counts of attempted murder.

 

But shortly after the attack, he told police that he had taken the weapon and two knives to the airport specifically to kill Americans "as revenge for the American mission in Afghanistan," Griesbaum said.

 

"Preliminary evaluations and evidence show it was the act of an Islamist-inspired single perpetrator," Griesbaum said. "There is no evidence at the moment the act was coordinated with others or that he was a member of a terrorist organization."

 

Uka said a YouTube video he saw the day before the incident allegedly showing a brutal raid on a home by U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan had inspired him to prevent what he considered "further atrocities."

 

When he saw the busload of 16 airmen parked outside Terminal 2 awaiting transport to the nearby Ramstein Air Base, he approached Alden, 25, from South Carolina, who was assigned to the 48th Security Forces Squadron at RAF Lakenheath in England.

 

Cuddeback, 21, hailed from Virginia and was assigned to the 86th Vehicle Readiness Squadron at Ramstein Air Base in Germany. He was the only airman in uniform. The others were dressed in civilian cloths.

 

After his weapon jammed, Uka fled, authorities say. The 22-year-old airman he last tried to shoot chased him into the airport terminal, where he and police overpowered the attacker.

 

German authorities believe that Uka only recently radicalized and that he acted alone — but Griesbaum said the incident shows there is a serious danger from what he called "virtual jihad," or those attracted to extremism through the Internet, not part of a radical network. "It underscores the danger of Islamists acting alone," he said.

 

Police said Uka was shy, had few friends and appeared to get his ideas not from mosque attendance or personal contact but from the Internet. He had not been observed at any of the mosques that police keep under surveillance, they said.

 

Police said they have not been able to identify the video he said had inspired him to violence, or whether such a video exists.

 

Griesbaum said the case underscored the threat from Internet extremism but added that the investigations could be slow and painstaking: "Gathering the evidence is extremely difficult."

 

The two U.S. airmen who were wounded have not been identified, and one of them remained hospitalized in critical condition on Friday.

 

Germany's Bild newspaper said Uka worked as a "sorter" for German postal service at Frankfurt Airport, NBC News reported.

 

Bild quoted spokesman Stefan Hess as saying that they "were very happy with his work" and that he had a short-term contract which was due to finish at the end of the month.

 

Another spokesman, Dirk Klasen, was quoted as saying that a background check had been conducted before Uka was hired, but there were no "abnormalities."

 

The Associated Press, Reuters, msnbc.com staff and NBC News' Andy Eckardt contributed to this report.

[Pew Pew Plates 358]

I wonder if he had a big bullet blasting box?

[Malsua 1,422]

Either FN have > 10 rounds, so he sure did. Big bullet blasting box that fired 2.

 

Anyone still on the "9 millimeters is weak" train?

[axeman_g 128]

He prob used the gangsta grip, brass did did not eject because of gravity, bingo... instant jam.

 

Not sure if they are selling FNPs over seas .... I would be willing to bet it was a FN P35.

 

Where did he get his gun? Can germans own handguns? Can foreign nationals get handguns in Germany?

[Malsua 1,422]

Why would you think he's hold it gangsta?

 

He's an Eastern European Muslim...they aren't exactly down with the boyeeezz in da hood.

[halbautomatisch 60]

He prob used the gangsta grip, brass did did not eject because of gravity, bingo... instant jam.

 

Not sure if they are selling FNPs over seas .... I would be willing to bet it was a FN P35.

 

Where did he get his gun? Can germans own handguns? Can foreign nationals get handguns in Germany?

You can get handguns in Germany, but their rules make NJ seem like a breeze. You must be a member of a shooting club, go through extensive backround checks, and have the police come to house to inspect the locked safe you are required to store it in.

 

Not sure about weather foreign nationals can get guns there or not, but it is possible he was a German citizen.

[axeman_g 128]

not referencing really boyz in da hood, but the boys in da village... yeah.

 

I have heard enough times about the very macho style of aimed fire by these terror types. Everything they learned about shooting guns was gleaned from the Scarface movie.

 

Plus, having owned a few HPs before, I can say I have never seen one jam, ever. But please do the test yourself. Next time your at the range, turn the gun on its left side so the ejection port is up. Now fire 5 rds fast. If you get through all five rds without a jam you got lucky. Gravity has a way of playing tricks on extractors, sometimes the brass either does not make it all the way out of the ejection port or actually slips back in.

[Malsua 1,422]

Next time your at the range, turn the gun on its left side so the ejection port is up. Now fire 5 rds fast. If you get through all five rds without a jam you got lucky. Gravity has a way of playing tricks on extractors, sometimes the brass either does not make it all the way out of the ejection port or actually slips back in.

 

My HK handles gangsta firing without any issue. I tried various angles as if I were leaning around cover or something. It's never jammed. I have to shoot offhand for the ejection port to be up, but I tried it, no issues.

 

Who knows what ammo he was using, probably hollow points which can be finicky. He probably never tried them, probably bought the gun illegally which means the gun probably wasn't properly cared for.

[chefhunter34 1]

It amazes me that they are hell bent to kill our soldiers, but pu_sy out when they have to face someone and they have no weapon to scare people with. Bunch of cowards. Drop the bomb and make a glass desert over there.

[DevsAdvocate 112]

Maybe a smuggled FN Hi-Power?

[tuktuk 16]

The world is going mad.....

 

PS Albanians have one of the biggest, baddest and most disciplined organized criminal networks throughout Europe. So if you know somebody anybody getting a gun is not a problem.

PS 2 the German citizenship is very tricky. Even if you were born and grow up in Fatherland doesn't mean that you get citizenship automatically.

PS 3 at some point Germans needed cheap labor so they let in Turks , albaninas and other eastern European folks but they forgot to tell them not to wish for German citizenship. And so the trouble began .....

[Soju 153]

I have been to Germany dozens of times. We are always briefed that there is potential terrorist activity around. There have been times where there was reason to believe a specific threat existed and added security measures were taken. I never saw it. Never realized the legitimacy. There are so many times I have been off base going to a hotel in uniform, dumb and happy. I'm sure the last thing these Airman were thinking was something would happen before they even got to the AOR, or for Cuddeback who was just doing what he does everyday at his duty station. It's scary. Hell, I've probably been on that same bus, and there is a good chance A1C Cuddeback was my driver at some point.

 

There are reports now that the shooter had potential ties to Al Qaeda through facebook. Whether he did or not, acted alone or not, this was an act of terrorism against us, my fellow Airmen, and the US.

 

[halbautomatisch 60]

The world is going mad.....

 

PS Albanians have one of the biggest, baddest and most disciplined organized criminal networks throughout Europe. So if you know somebody anybody getting a gun is not a problem.

PS 2 the German citizenship is very tricky. Even if you were born and grow up in Fatherland doesn't mean that you get citizenship automatically.

PS 3 at some point Germans needed cheap labor so they let in Turks , albaninas and other eastern European folks but they forgot to tell them not to wish for German citizenship. And so the trouble began .....

All this is true, that is why I said he might be a citizen, but it's certainly not a guarantee.

[Dan 177]

This type thing can happen anywhere. Don't forget Ft. Hood.

[halbautomatisch 60]

I have been to Germany dozens of times. We are always briefed that there is potential terrorist activity around. There have been times where there was reason to believe a specific threat existed and added security measures were taken. I never saw it. Never realized the legitimacy. There are so many times I have been off base going to a hotel in uniform, dumb and happy. I'm sure the last thing these Airman were thinking was something would happen before they even got to the AOR, or for Cuddeback who was just doing what he does everyday at his duty station. It's scary. Hell, I've probably been on that same bus, and there is a good chance A1C Cuddeback was my driver at some point.

 

There are reports now that the shooter had potential ties to Al Qaeda through facebook. Whether he did or not, acted alone or not, this was an act of terrorism against us, my fellow Airmen, and the US.

 

Germany is not a very dangerous place. I can understand the military's concern since there are a lot of Muslims (mostly Turks) over there, and if given a choice it would make sense to leave the base in civilian clothes if possible. That being said it's still probably safer than most major US cities.

[Soju 153]

Germany is not a very dangerous place. I can understand the military's concern since there are a lot of Muslims (mostly Turks) over there, and if given a choice it would make sense to leave the base in civilian clothes if possible. That being said it's still probably safer than most major US cities.

 

Understood and not my point.

[vjf915 456]

He had not been observed at any of the mosques that police keep under surveillance, they said.

Way to freakin go Germany, they know what the problem is and they're not afraid to act on it!!

[Joeybones 1]

+ 1 FOR THE BOMB !

[tuktuk 16]

+ 1 FOR THE BOMB !

 

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