Airport security scrutinized after breach by fugitive in St. George

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"If you defeat one layer of security, there are supposed to be other layers in place to prevent criminal or terrorist attacks," Price said. "Today, perimeter security at airports, it’s just a fence. They’re not required to have intrusion protection systems, and they’re not required to have closed circuit TV to monitor the fence because the current level of risk doesn’t warrant it.

"But maybe that needs to be looked at," he added.

Hedglin was a part-time soldier who worked as a cook in the Colorado National Guard. He had no specialized military training and was never deployed, Capt. Darin Overstreet said.

Cornejo was a full-time soldier who served in the Colorado Army National Guard’s 100th Missile Defense Brigade in Colorado Springs. She enlisted in June 2006, became a second lieutenant last year and was named a distinguished honor graduate in two training programs. She had recently begun training as a current operations officer.

"She was an outstanding new officer who had already made a significant impact on our organization," her commander, Col. Gregory Bowen, said in a statement.

SkyWest officials said the CRJ200 plane Hedglin stole was not in service at the time. The aircraft is made by Bombardier and is capable of flying up to 534 mph with a range of 1,700 miles. Normally it has a two-person flight crew and a single flight attendant.

A dozen flights leave or arrive at the St. George airport each weekday, according to the airport’s website. Most run between southern Utah and Salt Lake City, with two flights connecting St. George and Los Angeles.

Associated Press writers Holbrook Mohr in Jackson, Miss., and Colleen Slevin and Dan Elliott in Denver contributed to this report.

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