The September 11 Commission's report indicates that the Federal Aviation Administration received repeated warnings about a possible al Qaeda hijacking plot but did not take enough action.

52 such warnings were issued between April 2001 and September 10 many of which named Osama Bin Laden and al-Qaeda specifically. Five warnings included training for hijackings although none of them were specifically accurate about what happened on September 11.

Laura Brown, an FAA spokesman said, 'We had no specific information about means or methods that would have enabled us to tailor any countermeasures.'

The report was just made public after being declassified. Some highlights of the commission's findings:

Aviation officials were 'lulled into a false sense of security' and 'intelligence that indicated a real and growing threat leading up to 9/ll did not stimulate significant increases in security procedures.'

The FAA received 105 daily intelligence summaries between April 1, 2001, and Sept. 10, 2001. 52 mentioned Osama bin Laden, al Qaeda, or both but 'mostly in regard to overseas threats.'

The report says that the FAA failed to expand the use of in-flight air marshals or tighten airport screening for weapons. It said FAA officials were more concerned more typical problems such as reducing airline congestion, lessening delays and easing air carriers' financial problems than thwarting a terrorist attack.

A proposed rule to improve passenger screening and other security measures ordered by Congress in 1996 had been held up by the Office of Management and Budget and was still not in effect when the attacks occurred, according to the FAA.

Information in this report was available to members of the 9/11 commission when they issued their public report last summer. That report itself contained criticisms of FAA operations.

Since September 11, 2001, changes have been made in FAA safety procedures. Unfortunately, they came too late to prevent the death of thousands in the World Trade Center, on board hijacked airplanes and at the Pentagon.