Pilots threaten to stop service if kept unarmed

Union Leader ^ | 10/05/01 | KATHRYN MARCHOCKI

[kattracks]

Commercial airline pilots will be asked to suspend air service if they cannot have trained, armed pilots in the cockpits, a New Hampshire pilot said.

A resolution that will be circulated among the various councils of the 67,000-member Air Line Pilots Association this month asks federal regulations be changed to allow for the voluntary arming of flight crew members, Robert Giuda, a United Airlines captain of Warren said.

“Had we had armed pilots on Sept. 11, we wouldn’t have the horrific tragedy that we’re dealing with at this point,” Giuda said of the four hijacked jetliners.

Pilots would first get training in firearms by the FBI and would use their weapons only to defend against an attempted breach of the cockpit, the resolution said.

The resolution also calls for federal licensing of pilots to carry concealed weapons and for the government to indemnify air carriers and their employees against the legitimate use of a firearm.

If those steps are not carried out, the resolution calls for “a national suspension of air service, at such times and in such manner as is deemed appropriate by the leadership of the Air Line Pilots Association.”

“We’re hearing members of Congress say they don’t want a bunch of armed hooligans running around,” said Giuda, a New Hampshire state representative.

He said there was “no more professionalized, highly-scrutinized group of people in the world than airline pilots.”

The security of the flight deck cannot depend solely on armed sky marshals, he said.

Sky marshals can be picked out of a crowd and, if overpowered, would provide a hijacker with a weapon, Giuda said.

“It’s time to throw the gauntlet to the mat. We are going to get politicized into unarmed cockpits and then we’ll get shot with the guns the marshals used because they will be taken away from them,” he added.

Arming pilots introduces the element of “risk, fear and doubt” into the mind of a potential hijacker, he said.

[supercat]

You are in support of armed pilots then?

Definitely, with the caveat that the duty of a pilot is to protect the cockpit at all costs. If someone uses a shoelace to take a flight attendant hostage and threatens to kill her, the pilot should not leave the cockpit to intervene. Using the plane to hit the hijacker with some nasty g-forces is probably a good idea, but the pilot must not do anything that might risk cockpit security.

Note that I would not expect an armed pilot to act as a sky marshal; the two jobs are very different, and for a pilot to carry his gun into a cabin would be an invitation to disaster. Even within his limited role, however, (keeping control of his 100-ton missle), a pilot may in some cases have need of a sidearm and should thus be allowed to have one.

[rundy]

I travel a lot (25-30 weeks per year). I fully support armed pilots.
In fact, I think the FAA sould permit airlines to make the decision themselves.
Then the airlines could indicate which flights had armed pilots and air crew.

Let the public decide.

I have a prediction. The first airline to have and announce armed aircrews would be an unbelievable success.

That is the only airline I'd fly.

[dcwusmc]

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