US plans to use elite Delta Force commandos on flights

AFP | 9/13

[oxi-nato]

WASHINGTON, Sept 13 (AFP) - The US authorities plan to draft in elite Delta Force commandos to help protect civilian planes, Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta said Thursday.

"We are asking for expeditious treatment and action by the Department of Defense to give us some Delta Force folks," he told a news conference, announcing a reopening of US airspace from 1500 GMT.

"They are already trained on high-risk situations and it would not take that much more training to put the Delta Forces on the airplane," he added. "We are hoping to augment federal air marshals with Delta Forces."

[thucydides]

You have it exactly right. If the pilots were known to be armed, there would never even be an attempt. What we need immediately is a federal law authorizing concealed carry for all airline pilots on duty or traveling to or from work.

[Travis McGee]

This post is crap. Delta is a national asset which is too busy right now to ride around on plane guard duty.

TM, ex navspecwar 0-3.

[Wyatt's Torch]

LSJohn: If I remember correctly, you are an LSU grad. I am an Auburn grad. Your thoughts on our two institutions playing football Saturday night? Are you going to go to the game?

FReegards and War Eagle!

[harpseal]

"they" will be busy elsewhere with a reach out and touch a terrorist program of their own hopefully.

I would most certainly expect so.

Stay well - Yorktown

[AGAviator]

Sky Marshal duty is extremely boring and Delta Force personnel are not psychologically equipped to handle a job which which is 99+% sit-and-do-nothing...Pure cosmetics.

So right. And given that any bullet through a pressurized fueslage will cause the entire aircraft to explode, any people who do get put onto flights need to be well versed in unarmed combat, not the shoot-em-up stuff.

[Aric2000]

Delta Force are not the ones for this job, this was a silly idea.

What we do, is take a number of FBI types, train them in aircraft security. Then we put them in Civilian clothes, and put them randomly anywhere in the plane, the passengers, nor the crew would know who the Sky marshall or agent is.

Then we would just need to put one in every 5 flights, or less, just the threat of one of them being on a flight, would be enough of a deterrent I think.

At the same time, I believe that CWP (Concealed weapons permit) holders be allowed to carry on interstate flights, after training in an aircraft environment. And after making sure that when they carry on an aircraft that they have specialized ammo, that WILL not punch through the aircrafts skin. These people would also be totally unknown to the crew or passengers. The Airport security would be the only ones aware of those CWP's and Skymarshalls, but they would not be allowed to know where they are going, or what flight they are getting on.

[RANGERAIRBORNE]

Another Second Ranger Battalion alumnus- good to hear from you.

And I agree with you- see my previoius post on this topic.

In fact, the categories of people I am suggesting could almost IMMEDIATELY be armed and "on duty" when they fly includes active and former RANGERS (as well as SEALS, S.F. types with appropriate experience, and military and civilian police.) I carry a gun at all times- but I can't bring it on an airliner. If I have been judged "safe" to be legally armed at the Tastee-Freez, why the restriction?

And the old chestnut about a bullet hole in the fuselage "bringing down the plane" is just nonsense. I have flown in aircraft with lots of holes- if they get too annoying, duct tape works well to make a temporary patch. The only real risk is hitiing flight crew, or critical hydraulic lines or electrical circuits. GLASER SAFETY SLUGS were developed to prevent this sort of over-penetration problem- I will be glad to donate some! SUA SPONTE! 2nd Bn 75th Infantry (RANGER)

[Eagle Eye]

I'm suprised that they actually used the words "Delta Force". I believe that it's still a classified organization, and they're generally refered to as "operators" or "d-boys".

"Delta" was even used in offical corresponsdence back in the mid 80's. Deniability kinda vanished about 1980 at Desert One.

[xzins]

This is an incredibly stupid idea.

If you want air marshals, recruit and train air marshals. This is right there with Bill O'Reilly wanting combat troops checking ID's on the Mexican border. Both are stupid ideas. Combat troops should be training for combat. Border guards should be protecting borders. If you want more border guards, hire them and train them. If you want them to be a more upscale, lethal force, give them bigger guns and lethality training.

But don't take those who should be training for combat (troops) or those who should be training for precision, surgical operations (Delta) and send them back to kindergarten. It's sheer idiocy.

[xzins]

This is an incredibly stupid idea.

If you want air marshals, recruit and train air marshals. This is right there with Bill O'Reilly wanting combat troops checking ID's on the Mexican border. Both are stupid ideas. Combat troops should be training for combat. Border guards should be protecting borders. If you want more border guards, hire them and train them. If you want them to be a more upscale, lethal force, give them bigger guns and lethality training.

But don't take those who should be training for combat (troops) or those who should be training for precision, surgical operations (Delta) and send them back to kindergarten. It's sheer idiocy.

[allthingsnew]

Bingo. Other threats exist, but this particular one depended on the passengers & crew thinking that if they obeyed they would live. No one thinks that anymore.

[RANGERAIRBORNE]

"Any bullet through a pressurized fuselage will cause the entire aircraft to explode..." Do they teach this stuff in some secret school that I never attended? I have personally BEEN IN pressurized aircraft with small holes (about the size of bullet-holes, oddly enough). They didn't "explode", or even depressurize rapidly. The vulume of air in a 747 pressurized to a cabin altitude of 5,000 feet is NOT going to all rush out through a 0.38 inch hole!

I do agree that hitting flight crew, hydraulics, or critical electronics could be a BIG problem- see my previous post.

[rangerwife]

Hello to the 2/75 Rangers. Apparently that's the place to be now! SMaj Roberts used to be hubby's 1SG.

My husband has told me about the duct tape bit for holes on aircraft...I about fell on the floor...I didn't think he was serious, but he was.

Wife of 3/75 Ranger alumnus, the palace guards! LOL!

[LurkedLongEnough]

Sanitized related info in published source: Guards to ride shotgun on flights-Sydney Herald

[RANGERAIRBORNE]

"Don't waste your "best" on a "Maytag Repairman" job. Use retired military or police guys. The next time the Terrorists hit everything will be different anyway. It will involve a bus, train, A-Bomb, poisoned water supply, or whatever"

This was probably the best post on this thread, at least so far. We are focusing on the WRONG THREAT- the aircraft hijacking scenario worked once, it will not work again. We need to be thinking about a whole range of other weak points in our infrastructure that can be attacked- like the telecommunications, electrical grid, water and food supply, ports (remember Texas City? You don't need a nuke to wreck a port city) and on and on.

[patton]

1SFOG, not ODA-D

[rangerwife]

In place to be, I meant as in the best BN to be in. Lots of hubby's best buds from there or headed back by choice because they missed it so much.

[RANGERAIRBORNE]

Hooah! Yes, apparently there are a LOT of present and former RANGERS on this site. I had to laugh at the post above, from the Navy guy, saying tbat the "Army is too nice" for this job! It's a cinch that he has never been in the field with a RANGER Company! (Or a barfight, either- LOL!)

[ScreamingFist]

How dumb. Why use highly trained COMBAT troops when a well trained ex-military SP with a .45 and Glaser saftey slugs could do the same job? They need to pull their heads out.

[Don Myers]

My immediate response to this article is first, they use our armed forces on peacekeeping missions, and now they want Delta Force people to become sky marshals.