[RedBloodedAmerican]

I was thinking Cuba, too. But how, if they allow passengers to have concealed weapons, will they make the distinction between a regular passenger and a possible hijacker? And I don't think *I* want to be aboard a pressurized tube of aluminum, hurtling around the globe at 600knots, 7 miles up when someone pops a hole in the skin! Can you say "Aloha Airlines!"?

[NEWwoman]

>>pops a hole in the skin

I thought planes were better made than that and could withstand a hit. Saw a special on it. Though I could be wrong--as you pointed out the Aloha example.

[ninenot]

Duhhh..even old wives don't tell THAT tale. Put your scarf over the hole and it will knot up, preserving pressure.

The jet engine turbines are driving the pressurization mechanism. There's plenty of pressure to go around.

[Mulder]

And I don't think *I* want to be aboard a pressurized tube of aluminum, hurtling around the globe at 600knots, 7 miles up when someone pops a hole in the skin! Can you say "Aloha Airlines!"?

A bullet hole in an airline is generally "no big deal" according to the stuff I've read by airplane engineers. Also, there is ammo available that will fragment on impact, so it's a moot point.

It is certainly not as bad as taking a Sidewinder missile up the ass, which is the current "policy", if it can even be called such.

Can you say "Aloha Airlines!"?

Yeah, the "evil handguns" are capable of making a 30 foot hole. I've even heard that many of the evil handguns can shoot bullets that can travels hundreds of miles, piercing anything in it's path. They are even known to just "go off" for no reason.

Time to ban them all. It's for the children.

[Don Joe]

"But how, if they allow passengers to have concealed weapons, will they make the distinction between a regular passenger and a possible hijacker?"

You're missing the whole point.

The purpose of "an armed society" isn't so that everyone goes around shooting everyone else. The purpose of an armed society is to prevent people from shooting each other.

It's called "deterrence", and it's been proven to work. Most recent/dramatic example? It was called "the cold war".

Therefore, your question is meaningless, because "if they allow passengers to have concealed weapons," there won't be any hijackers on the plane -- and thus, no reason to even try to "make the distinction between a regular passenger and a possible hijacker."

[DuncanWaring]

The "Aloha" problem was due to faulty construction of the aircraft, and a lot of use.

Note that even with a barndoor-sized hole in the roof, the aircraft was landed successfully.