Officials: Man may have fired on U.S. planes

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Sudan has picked up a member of an al Qaeda terrorist cell who is believed to have tried to shoot down a U.S. plane with shoulder-fired missiles in Saudi Arabia, U.S. officials told CNN Wednesday.

The officials said the man, a Sudanese national who spent some time in Saudi Arabia, claimed to have penetrated security at the highly guarded Prince Sultan air base and tried to fire a missile at a U.S. military plane.

The FBI issued an "intelligence bulletin" warning of the "potential" targeting of commercial aircraft in the United States by terrorists armed with shoulder-fired missiles after investigators last month concluded al Qaeda operatives might have tried to shoot down a U.S. military plane at the remote desert base.

On May 10, CNN reported the discovery earlier in the month of an expended Russian-made SA-7 shoulder-fired surface-to-air missile tube and parts inside a security fence at the Saudi base, and officials said Wednesday they believe the man was responsible for them.

Two weeks ago, CNN reported a May 22 FBI bulletin that said: "Subsequent investigation suggests that the discovery is likely related to al Qaeda targeting efforts against U.S.-led forces on the Arabian Peninsula."

U.S. officials would not say whether U.S. law enforcement authorities had access to the detained man, or where he was being held.