RST: New book details skyjackings;

What to look for on Radio Smart Talk Thursday, August 1, 2013:

Think it’s inconvenient or a hassle to remove your shoes, have your bags checked, show identification, and go through metal detectors at airports?

Just picture what it would be like without all those security precautions when you fly.

American airports had none of those measures in place before the mid-1970s and we know what happened — 159 commercial aircraft were hijacked between 1961 and 1972, including 40 in 1972 alone. In fact, some passengers walked on board with guns or other weapons.

On Thursday’s Radio Smart Talk, Brendan Koerner, author of the new book The Skies Belong to Us: Love and Terror in the Golden Age of Hijacking, joins us to discuss an era almost forgotten in post 9/11.

In the book, Koerner describes many of the skyjackings, but also focuses on a couple who pulled off a daring hijacking in 1972 with thoughts of Vietnam War protests and rebellion on their minds.

Koerner will also discuss the book Friday morning in Mt. Gretna as part of that community’s writers series.

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