We are going to Europe next week. Got to say, these reports on imminent threats to airplanes freak me out. How do you travelers deal with this type of information? I almost feel like canceling the whole trip but don't want to give in to them.

Stay informed but remember that with the media, if it bleeds, it leads.

Just back from 2 weeks in northern Europe and glad I went.

Did you know about Khorasan yesterday? Will you know the next group they mention next week?

I usually figure security increases after these threats so it is probably a safer time to travel.

People keep saying to me, "Have a safe trip."

What I want to say in reply is, "Have a safe shower tomorrow - - don't slip and fall and fracture your hip," but I never do.

Threats and stuff like this has been around forever. We just did not hear about so quickly.
Have a wonderful and fun trip!

Since Khorasan is specifically being cited by governments as the rationale from dropping a tons of bombs on real human beings, killing more people than could possibly killed by exploding an airplane, I am wondering if anyone who thinks the threat is trivial is disturbed by these policies.

Some members of Congress do think that the Khorasan threat is being exaggerated to justify renewed involvement in the Middle East. It looks like a majority of Americans did not feel that the beheadings of people who had voluntarily gone into danger zones was reason enough a to send US or UK military personnel back into the Middle East or to get further involved in violence there.

"
“I think the USG is blowing them [Khorasan] way out of proportion,” said a congressional aide who focuses on Syria. “They need a good story right now and saying they subverted a terrorist plot against America is good press.” ...

“Myself and some others are wondering why this suddenly appeared last week, why this leaked out after being kept so secret,” said a Republican congressman familiar with Khorasan. “It could be that they wanted a good reason why we attacked them in Syria. We are saying they are a threat to the US so they obviously wanted that out there before we attacked that.”

In addition to the moral problem of inventing excuses to become involved in foreign wars, it appears that bombing in the middle east increases the number of young people attracted to the idea of becoming a terrorist focused on attacking US and UK citizens.

From the Washington Post:

"Among some analysts, there's anger at what they see as a misleading use of the term. "[The name] is clearly U.S.-originated," [one analyst] said, later adding that he believed that the United States "blew up this story" to justify its attacks on Jabhat al-Nusra. "It’s cute Pentagon is literally making up new group called ‘Khurasan’ when it’s just AQ AfPak/Iran guys in [Jabhat al-Nusra]," Zelin tweeted after the strikes against the group were announced.

That sense of distrust is amplified by conflicting reports about the threat posed by the group. While Army Lt. Gen. William C. Mayville Jr., director of operations for the Joint Chiefs of Staff, initially told reporters this week that the group was in the “final stages of plans to execute major attacks against Western targets and potentially the U.S. homeland," exactly what that plan was remains unclear. One senior U.S. official told the New York Times this week that the plot was “aspirational.”

No matter where the name "Khorasan" came from, its easy to see why it could be a positive for U.S. officials to use it. For one thing, by avoiding using the name al-Qaeda, the U.S. doesn't remind the world that after more than a decade of the "War on Terror," al-Qaeda is still an operational force. It also allows the U.S. to avoid mention of strikes on Jabhat al-Nusra, the al-Qaeda group that enjoys a large amount of support in Syria and opposes both the Islamic State and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Finally, there's the simple fact that Khorasan is a new and evocative name. Frankly, it's something for the U.S. public to latch onto.


possibly some aspirational guy in the Pentagon got the bright idea for "Khorasan" over breakfast

http://www.kamut.com/en/history.html

I'd be more worried about a 3yr old in your family finding a gun and killing themselves or a sibling

Thank you for your comments and helping me put this into perspective. I don't usually change my plans for these news items, but this seemed so "imminent". Off to Croatia next week!

It was a toothpaste bomb from what I have read. Trust me, if they want to do something they will do it but nothing to get upset over. If it is your time it is your time. My family left for Greece yesterday and they never even though about it.

Having your family die on a plane is nothing to get upset over? Sort of taking pre-determinaion to a new high.

By the way, a toothpaste bomb wasn't the new worry. It is nitroglycerin-dipped clothes.

http://www.popularmechanics.com/tech...reats-17248780

Rather than never even think about, people might want to spend some thinking about why people are working night and day to find way to do this to American and European travelers. This isn't an act of god, or just one way of having "your time be up."

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/travel/ar...-3641744540001

Just to give you a sense of how much air traffic there is between North America and Europe on a daily basis.

Sandralist's post at 3:54 am is rife with inaccuracies, one of which is that Khorasan is a made-up name for Jabhat al Nusra. Jabhat al Nusra is know as the Al Nusra Front in the US, and it is not synonymous with Khorasan group.

I see little point in arguing here, but I do wish to urge everyone to pay attention to these details--know your enemy, if you will. They are not all the same species of "evildoer", and while understanding the intricacies is difficult, it's essential to being an informed citizen.

As for the OP, there is no way to know how to stay safe from anything, be it terrorist attack, lightning strike, virus... No, they are not all the same kind of threat, but they have unpredictability in common, so all we can do is, perhaps, nothing.

So you are going to worry yourself sick about flying which is statistically the most safe way of travel.

Whilst probably driving to the airport which will sure as hell nearly kill you.

Need to get some perspective here me thinks.

No one can assure another of their safety under any circumstance. I will not recount the personal events of 9/11 and the subsequent months but I am determined not to let terrorists or the threats of terrorists dictate my actions.