The behavior of a group of 13 Syrian musicians, on their way to an engagement in San Diego, was deemed suspicious by at least one passenger, who raised concerns that they were observing a terrorist attack or a dry run test.

A redacted version of the Department of Homeland Security Inspector General's report was released in May 2007[2][3][4] as a result of a Freedom of Information Act request made by the Washington Times.

In a series of articles for WomensWallStreet titled "Terror in the Skies, Again?," Jacobsen claimed that several other Flight 327 passengers have corroborated her story including one who was so frightened by what she witnessed that she no longer travels by air and others said they were convinced they were about to die.

The Federal Air Marshal Service concluded that they were Syrian band members en route to a San Diego casino to perform.

[13] Furthermore, the federal air marshals believed that Jacobsen "over-reacted" at the presence of persons of Middle Eastern appearance on the flight and "was in danger of panicking other passengers and creating a larger problem".

They were also concerned that Jacobsen's actions were part of a terrorist plot to create a disturbance in order that the marshals be identified and that she "could have put the entire flight in danger".

[7] The Department of Homeland Security, Office of the Inspector General, spent twenty-two months investigating Flight 327; the report has been classified,[14] but a redacted version reveals that the musical group's promoter, who was on the plane, had been involved in a similar incident in January 2004.

[17] Jacobsen's original article was distributed widely through emails, and the veracity of her claims was discussed and dismissed on the Snopes urban legend website, which determined them to be "false".