Editing Richard Reid (section)

==Preparation for bombing==
Reid and [[Saajid Badat]], another British man preparing as a terrorist, returned to Pakistan in November 2001, and reportedly travelled overland to Afghanistan. They were given "shoe bombs", casual footwear adapted to be covertly smuggled onto aircraft before being used to destroy them. Later [[forensic analysis]] of both bombs showed that they contained the same [[plastic explosive]] and that the respective lengths of [[detonator cord]] had come from the same batch: the cut mark on Badat's cord exactly matched that on Reid's. The pair returned separately to the United Kingdom in early December 2001. Reid went to Belgium for 10 days before catching a train to Paris on 16 December.<ref name="CNN 12-28-01"/>

On 21 December 2001, Reid attempted to board a flight from Paris to [[Miami, Florida]]. His boarding was delayed because his dishevelled physical appearance aroused the suspicions of the airline passenger screeners. Once questioned by an [[ICTS International|ICTS]] agent, he was referred to the [[French National Police]] due to his seemingly evasive behaviour and lack of luggage. Because his British passport was genuine and his name was not found on any lists of suspected terrorists, the police did not X-ray him or use bomb-sniffing dogs. The extended questioning resulted in Reid missing his flight, so he stayed overnight at a hotel near the airport while American Airlines was allowed to re-issue a ticket.<ref name="nyt 12-25-01">{{Cite news |last=Belluck |first=Pam Belluck |last2=McNeil Jr |first2=Donald G. |date=25 December 2001 |title=A NATION CHALLENGED: THE SUSPECT; Officials Remain Uncertain On Identity of Suspect on Jet |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2001/12/25/us/nation-challenged-suspect-officials-remain-uncertain-identity-suspect-jet.html |access-date=28 October 2023 |issn=0362-4331}}</ref><ref name="cnn 12-25-01"/> He returned to the airport the following day and boarded [[American Airlines]] Flight 63 from Paris to Miami, wearing shoes packed with plastic explosives in their hollowed-out bottoms.