You attempted an apple and oranges attack on the magic passport by citing the Columbia disaster, but as I pointed out at the time, disintegrating shuttles and suicide jetliners have almost nothing in common.
The shuttle broke up gradually as it attempted re-entry, so we should not be surprised that many parts of it survived the disaster and were scattered over a wide area.
By contrast, we have been led to believe that not even the jetliner's almost indestructable black boxes survived the horrifying, sudden impact and explosion, and the subsequent conflagration and collapse of the towers.
Bear in mind, please, not a single scrap of paper from the suicide jetliners survived the crashes into the towers except for the alleged terrorist's passport which allegedly emerged, virtually intact and unburnt, from a pile of rubble in the days following Black Tuesday, reportedly turned in to the authorities by an unidentified person.
Hijacker's Passport and a Landing Gear Fragment Alone Survive Fiery Crash
Interestingly, ABC news, among others, reports that it was not Mohammed Atta's passport found in the rubble, as is commonly claimed, but Satan Suqami's;
ABCNEWS sources identify another hijacker as Satan Suqami, a Saudi national on American Airlines Flight 11, whose passport was recovered in the rubble.
Terrorist Hunt
But Atta's passport did turn up.
Two of Atta's bags from an early flight from Portland are not loaded onto Flight 11 and are discovered. They contain a handheld electronic flight computer, a simulator procedures manual for Boeing 757 and 767 aircraft, two videotapes relating to "air tours" of the Boeing 757 and 747 aircraft, a slide-rule flight calculator, a copy of the Koran, Atta's passport, his international driver's license, a religious cassette tape, airline uniforms, a letter of recommendation, "education related documentation", a note to other hijackers on how to mentally prepare for the hijacking, and Atta's will (written in 1996). [AP, 10/5/01, Sydney Morning Herald, 9/15/01, Boston Globe, 9/18/01, Independent, 9/29/01, (see also an FBI affidavit that omits certain items, like the uniforms and the how-to note)] A New Yorker reporter later writes, "many of the investigators believe that some of the initial clues that were uncovered about the terrorists' identities and preparations, such as flight manuals, were meant to be found. A former high-level intelligence official told me, 'Whatever trail was left was left deliberately—for the FBI to chase.'" [New Yorker, 10/1/01] Why would Atta have brought his will onto a plane he knew would be destroyed? Why would the airline uniforms be where they couldn't be used in the hijacking? In fact, why bring anything at all unless it is to leave it behind and send a message? Atta checked his bags through to his final destination while at Portland, so how could he have known they would be left behind to be found?
(My emphasis)
source
And then, there is this:
The INS inspector general noted in his report that Atta appeared to have entered the US twice on January 10th 2001. That is because Atta had been given two separate admission numbers--- 68653985709, expiring 9/10/01, and 10847166009 expiring July 9th.
In 1999, Atta reported his passport stolen, allegedly to cover the tracks of a visit of Afghanistan.
There's still more about Atta.
Were there intelligence failures leading up to 911? I should say so.
Inspector Clouseau would be proud.
S