Ban on Crop-Dusting Extended a Second Day

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Byline: Mick Zawislak Daily Herald Staff Writer

Pilots who use special planes to dispense pesticides were grounded for a second consecutive day Monday due to fears of the potential for airborne chemical or biological attack.

In Illinois, FBI agents told crop-dusting companies to be "extra alert" about any suspicious activity, said Frank Bochte, a spokesman in the Chicago office.

The ban came after authorities learned that one of the suspected hijackers in the attack on the World Trade Center had shown interest in crop-dusters and that a man now in federal custody had downloaded information about the planes, Attorney General John Ashcroft said.

He …