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NEWARK, N.J. A Parsippany man pleads innocent to federal charges that he pointed a hand-held laser device at an aircraft and lied to investigators about it. David W. Banach was arraigned yesterday on an indictment handed up March 23rd by a federal grand jury. Banach is accused of pointing a hand-held laser toward a charter aircraft en route to Teterboro Airport on December 29th. The laser beam allegedly lit up the cockpit, causing both pilots a temporary loss of night vision that briefly prevented them from seeing flight instruments and other aircraft in the vicinity. Banach's lawyer said he was...

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP)3-16-05 -- A bill making it a third degree felony to aim a laser beam at an operating plane, train or car was approved today by the Senate Criminal Justice Committee. The bill is inspired by the recent incidents of pilots reporting lasers being aimed into cockpits over other states. Pointing a laser at a car would be a third degree felony and carries a penalty of up to five years in prison. It would be a second degree felony if someone is injured and a first degree felony if someone is killed. National Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta...

WASHINGTON (AP) - The FBI is investigating several more reports of lasers being beamed into aircraft cockpits following a rash of similar incidents at the end of 2004. The most recent sightings of lasers, which can temporarily blind pilots, come as Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta planned to brief reporters Wednesday about the issue at the Federal Aviation Administration's aeronautical research center in Oklahoma City. Mineta is expected to announce new measures for alerting pilots and preparing them to react when lasers are shined at their aircraft. He is also expected to outline ways to notify law enforcement investigators more quickly....

CLEVELAND - Authorities are investigating a mysterious laser beam that was directed into the cockpit of a commercial jet traveling at more than 8,500 feet. The beam appeared Monday when the plane was about 15 miles from Cleveland Hopkins International Airport, the FBI (news - web sites) said. "It was in there for several seconds like (the plane) was being tracked," FBI agent Robert Hawk said. The pilot was able to land the plane, and air traffic controllers used radar to determine the laser came from a residential area in suburban Warrensville Heights. Hawk said the laser had to have...

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- Fisk University's new president, Clinton administration Energy Secretary Hazel O'Leary, was escorted off a flight and questioned by the FBI after she became abusive and tried to get into the cockpit while the plane was delayed on the tarmac, authorities said. O'Leary said she simply wanted to get off the plane. "I regret the unfortunate misunderstanding that occurred," she said in a statement. "The situation was resolved. At no time was I rude or disrespectful to anyone." The United Airlines crew told police that O'Leary was "getting loud and abusive" after the flight was diverted to Richmond,...

Drunken 'Stripper' Sparks Probe Mon May 17,11:55 AM ET LONDON (Reuters) - A drunken woman looking for a place to sleep slipped past security and onto an aircraft at Aberdeen airport in Scotland where she dozed unnoticed for several hours, sparking a review of security. The British Airports Authority (BAA) said Monday it had launched a full investigation after the woman -- reported by a newspaper to be a scantily clad stripper -- scaled a fence and boarded a private jet. "The young woman was found aboard an aircraft last Thursday and an investigation is under way," a BAA spokesman...

WASHINGTON -- Members of the Airline Pilots Security Alliance and other pilot organizations will join U.S. Senators Jim Bunning (R-KY) and Barbara Boxer (D-CA) and Rep. Joe Wilson (R-SC) at a press conference Thursday, April 1, 2004, at 11:30 a.m. (EST) where they will introduce new legislation that will force the Transportation Security Agency (TSA) to implement the Federal Flight Deck Officer (FFDO) program as originally intended by Congress. Since the armed pilots program was first created by Congress nearly two years ago the TSA has been dragging its feet in arming a fraction of the 100,000 pilots eligible to...

Man arrested after rushing cockpit of flight to Atlanta A 53-year-old man rushed the cockpit of South African Airlines Flight 7799 en route to Atlanta Thursday morning, authorities said. It was not a terrorist incident, FBI Atlanta spokesman Joe Parris said. The man, identified as James Drake, is a U.S. citizen who was arrested in 1987 after a similar incident on another airline, Parris said. "It's not terrorist related. ... We don't know what motivated it," Parris said. "People act up on airplanes all the time. They did it before 9/11 and they got arrested before 9/11. None of that...

<p>WASHINGTON — Airline pilots are stepping up their campaign to pressure the Bush administration to train more commercial pilots to carry guns in the cockpit.</p> <p>Fewer than 200 pilots have been deputized to carry weapons since November, when Congress ordered the government to start a program for pilots who want to be armed when they fly.</p>

(IsraelNN.com) Minister of Transportation Avigdor Lieberman today announced a new regulation for all airplanes flying to and from Israel. Beginning on 31 October 2003, all aircraft must be equipped with a bulletproof door to the pilot’s cockpit. The Israel Civil Air Administration has sent the new security regulation to the international airline community as well as to airlines operating in Israel.

<p>GLYNCO, Ga. (AP) - Only two of the 48 commercial airline pilots in the first class being trained to carry guns in the cockpit failed to make it through the early days of a rigorous course at a federal facility.</p>

Bush to OK Guns for Airline Pilots By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Filed at 6:37 p.m. ET WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Senate voted overwhelmingly Thursday to allow commercial pilots to carry weapons in the cockpit after the Bush administration dropped its opposition to the idea. The administration, though, said a number of safety and logistical issues needed to be resolved. In a letter to two senators, the White House recommended giving pilots lockboxes for the weapons so they won't be left in the cockpit. It also said only pilots who volunteer to carry weapons and receive extensive training should be armed....

<p>CNN has a poll on their main page asking the question "Would you feel safer while flying if pilots were allowed to carry guns in the cockpit?"</p>

<p>LOS ANGELES (AP) - A woman passenger allegedly tried to enter the cockpit of a Southwest Airlines jet in flight Monday but she was seized and turned over to local authorities for a mental evaluation, the FBI said.</p> <p>Sacramento-bound Flight 2060 turned around shortly after a 10:30 a.m. takoff from Los Angeles International Airport because a woman "began interfering with the flight crew," which is a federal violation, said Laura Bosley, an FBI spokeswoman.</p>

The U.S. government's ruling that commercial airplane pilots will not be allowed to carry firearms in the cockpit may quiet for now the pilots' demands to be able do so. But it likely isn't the end of the issue. Not only have the pilots been pushing to carry guns in light of terrorist attacks and threats, but the Association of Flight Attendants also has suggested that its 50,000 members have access to nonlethal weapons such as stun guns, also known as tasers. That's why I recently asked bCentral's readers how they feel about allowing airline employees to have weapons on...

My apologies if this has been posted before. Follow this link to Sign Electronic Petition to ARM PILOTS petitiononline.com This petition has been a coordinated effort between the Airline Pilots’ Security Alliance (APSA), the Allied Pilots Association (APA), the Southwest Airline Pilots Association (SWAPA), the Coalition of Airline Pilots Association (CAPA), and the Independent Pilots Association (IPA).

2 months before 9-11 This is a WorldNetDaily printer-friendly version of the article which follows. To view this item online, visit http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=27647 Thursday, May 16, 2002 HOMELAND INSECURITYArmed pilots banned2 months before 9-11FAA rescinded rule allowing guns in cockpits just before terror attacks Posted: May 16, 20021:00 a.m. Eastern By Jon Dougherty © 2002 WorldNetDaily.com A 40-year-old Federal Aviation Administration rule that allowed commercial airline pilots to be armed was inexplicably rescinded two months before the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, leading aviation security experts to lay at least some of the blame for the tragedy at the feet of airlines, none of...