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Call to Arm Pilots Grows Louder (petition link)
Josey1
Member Posts: 9,598 ✭✭
Call to Arm Pilots Grows Louder
More Signatures Sought For Petition
Congress, this week, revisited one of the recurring topics raised during last week's Annual Meetings-the idea of allowing properly trained flight crew on commercial aircraft to be permitted to carry firearms to defend their aircraft. U.S. Representatives John Mica (R-Fla.) and Don Young (R-Alas.) recently introduced H.R. 4635, which seeks to establish a training program for arming flight crew, and on Thursday, the House Subcommittee on Aviation held hearings to discuss the subject.
In addition, a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators held a press conference to announce the introduction of a companion bill to H.R. 4635 in the Senate. The group of Senators included Conrad Burns (R-Mt.), Zell Miller, Frank Murkowski (R-Alas.), and Bob Smith (R-N.H.).
Although President Bush signed into law the "Aviation and Transportation Security Act of 2001" last November, which includes language that allows properly trained commercial pilots, co-pilots, and flight engineers to carry firearms aboard commercial airplanes, there has been no implementation of a program to train and equip flight deck crew members who wish to be prepared to use firearms as a last resort to defend commercial aircraft from hijackers.
Two weeks ago, we told you about an online petition spearheaded by several airline pilot organizations. The petition is being promoted to urge Congress and President Bush to move ahead to ensure the establishment of a program that will properly train and equip flight crew to act as an effective last line of defense against terrorists or other hijackers. If you have not yet signed the online petition urging President Bush to support arming airline flight crew, the deadline to sign has been extended. Please be sure to add your support. The petition can be found at http://secure-skies.org/. Also be sure to urge your U.S. Representative to support H.R. 4635, which seeks to implement the training program through legislation, rather than administratively. You can reach your U.S. Representative by calling (202) 225-3121. You can find additional contact information by using our "Write Your Reps" tool.
http://www.nraila.org/LegislativeUpdate.asp?FormMode=Detail&ID=382
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
More Signatures Sought For Petition
Congress, this week, revisited one of the recurring topics raised during last week's Annual Meetings-the idea of allowing properly trained flight crew on commercial aircraft to be permitted to carry firearms to defend their aircraft. U.S. Representatives John Mica (R-Fla.) and Don Young (R-Alas.) recently introduced H.R. 4635, which seeks to establish a training program for arming flight crew, and on Thursday, the House Subcommittee on Aviation held hearings to discuss the subject.
In addition, a bipartisan group of U.S. Senators held a press conference to announce the introduction of a companion bill to H.R. 4635 in the Senate. The group of Senators included Conrad Burns (R-Mt.), Zell Miller, Frank Murkowski (R-Alas.), and Bob Smith (R-N.H.).
Although President Bush signed into law the "Aviation and Transportation Security Act of 2001" last November, which includes language that allows properly trained commercial pilots, co-pilots, and flight engineers to carry firearms aboard commercial airplanes, there has been no implementation of a program to train and equip flight deck crew members who wish to be prepared to use firearms as a last resort to defend commercial aircraft from hijackers.
Two weeks ago, we told you about an online petition spearheaded by several airline pilot organizations. The petition is being promoted to urge Congress and President Bush to move ahead to ensure the establishment of a program that will properly train and equip flight crew to act as an effective last line of defense against terrorists or other hijackers. If you have not yet signed the online petition urging President Bush to support arming airline flight crew, the deadline to sign has been extended. Please be sure to add your support. The petition can be found at http://secure-skies.org/. Also be sure to urge your U.S. Representative to support H.R. 4635, which seeks to implement the training program through legislation, rather than administratively. You can reach your U.S. Representative by calling (202) 225-3121. You can find additional contact information by using our "Write Your Reps" tool.
http://www.nraila.org/LegislativeUpdate.asp?FormMode=Detail&ID=382
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
Comments
Monday, May 6, 2002
The Bush administration's resistance to allowing guns in airline cockpits is frustrating to the 75 percent of pilots who wish to arm themselves. They wonder why people who are entrusted with the equivalent of a flying bomb are deemed untrustworthy to carry a handgun.
It's a good question, and the administration has not properly answered it. Transportation Secretary Norm Mineta has proclaimed with little elaboration that the cockpit is no place for a firearm, so the case is closed as far as the administration is concerned. But this is a legitimate national security issue that deserves some vigorous debate. Can pilots be safely armed? If arming pilots with traditional guns is not the answer, how about stun guns?
It is debatable whether armed pilots would have an impact on airline safety. A captain's gun wouldn't protect a plane if a terrorist managed to slip a bomb on board. A gun might be useful against a fanatic with a box cutter, but so would a sturdy cockpit door. Proponents' best argument is that if everyone is aware that pilots are armed, terrorists might be less likely to attempt to commandeer an aircraft. That's probably true, but it's also probable that the heroic example of Flight 93 last Sept. 11 is a bigger deterrent. The next terrorist who tries to get to the cockpit can expect to meet a lot of passenger resistance.
The arguments against arming pilots are equally debatable. Opponents fear that the captain could be overpowered and his firearm stolen, but if a pilot were overpowered the assailant wouldn't need a gun to kill everyone on board. Opponents' other major concern -- that firearms could be discharged accidentally and damage the plane's fuselage -- could be mitigated by requiring special fragmenting ammo and rigorous training. Not that most pilots need more training. About 70 percent are military veterans and are already well-versed in handling weapons.
Regardless of where Americans stand on this issue, all would benefit from some enlightening discussion. If the administration will not open up the dialogue, Congress should support proposed legislation requiring such debate.
http://www.sltrib.com/05062002/opinion/734445.htm
Bush Choosing 'Gun Control Over Terrorist Control'
By Jeff Johnson
CNSNews.com Congressional Bureau Chief
May 06, 2002
Capitol Hill (CNSNews.com) - The Libertarian Party says President George W. Bush, not the anti-gun liberals in his administration, is directly responsible for why America's commercial airline pilots remain defenseless against terrorists.
"The president puts whoever he wants in cabinet agencies and they answer to him," said Libertarian Party spokesman George Getz.
"So if the president wants pilots not to carry guns, it doesn't matter if he's got [Transportation Secretary] Norman Mineta or [National Rifle Association Executive Vice President] Wayne LaPierre or [Gun Owners of America Executive Director] Larry Pratt in that job, the guns are going to get banned," he continued.
Second Amendment rights supporters and pilots groups have criticized Mineta for his public opposition to arming commercial airline pilots.
"I don't feel that we should have lethal weapons in the cockpit," Mineta said at a March 4 press conference with Undersecretary for Transportation Security John Magaw, the former director of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.
While Libertarians acknowledge Mineta's anti-gun history in Congress, they say the transportation secretary cannot be solely faulted for the administration's inaction.
"It's telling only half the story to blame this on the cabinet secretary," Getz contended. "This is President Bush's opinion. If he doesn't like what Mineta is doing, he can fire him."
Libertarians say the fact that Mineta was not fired, or any kind of correction issued regarding the statement, proves that Bush supports it.
"He's chosen gun control over terrorist control," Getz added.
Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge and Federal Aviation Administrator Jane Garvey have also publicly stated their disapproval of arming pilots.
A comment Wednesday by White House spokesman Gordon Johndroe supports the Libertarians' contention that Bush opposes the move, as well.
"We don't need to have a potential for handguns getting loose on airplanes," he said, claiming arming pilots "could create more danger than it eliminates."
Bush Being Doubly Hypocritical
Getz believes Bush, who signed the legislation allowing thousands of law-abiding Texans to carry a concealed handgun for self-defense, is being doubly hypocritical.
"He's cruising around on Air Force One. He's surrounded by armed Secret Service agents," he argued. "But he tells everyone else they shouldn't have the same right to fly in safety."
The decision over whether airlines may allow their pilots to be armed could be taken out of the hands of everyone in the administration except President Bush, if some congressmen have their way.
CNSNews.com reported Wednesday that Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska) and John Mica (R-Fla.) have introduced legislation to force the creation of a voluntary armed pilots program.
The bill would require the Transportation Security Administration to establish a program to deputize qualified, volunteer pilots as "Federal Flight Deck Officers" within 90 days after its enactment. Within 120 days of enactment, 500 such pilots must be deputized under the act, and all volunteer pilots who meet the requirements must be deputized within two years.
The proposal would also provide training and background checks for the pilots similar to those undergone by Federal Air Marshals.
'Too Much Of A Government Program'
That bill has the support of the major airline pilots' unions, but not of the first member of Congress to suggest arming pilots after the September 11th attacks.
Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) says Congress simply needs to acknowledge the constitutional right of airlines to allow their pilots to carry firearms on the airlines' private property, nothing more.
"Just like any other industry that has [armed] guards and security all the time, I don't think the airlines should be any different. The Young-Mica bill," he says, "is too much of a government program."
None of the major airlines has come out in support of any "armed pilots" proposal, but industry insiders say the Young-Mica legislation is more palatable to the airlines because it shifts the liability for mistakes from them to the federal government.
But Paul sees that as another of the problems with the Young-Mica bill.
"I wanted [liability] to fall on the business that has a responsibility to protect its property. I wanted to just legalize their right to do so," he explained.
The airlines, Paul says, should have the same liability that any other business would have if an armed employee of the business improperly used his or her weapon.
"Hopefully we live in a civilized society that, if we're being attacked by terrorists and we shoot them, that we would have enough sense not to put the people doing the shooting in jail," he added.
On September 17, 2001 the Texas conservative introduced H.R. 2896, "to provide for the safety of United States aviation and the suppression of terrorism." The proposal has the distinction of being one of the shortest bills ever introduced.
After four sentences of "findings" about the terrorist attacks, it states: "Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no department or agency of the Federal Government shall prohibit any pilot, copilot, or navigator of an aircraft, or any law enforcement personnel specifically detailed for the protection of that aircraft, from carrying a firearm."
The bill has 19 co-sponsors and was immediately referred to the House Subcommittee on Aviation, which Mica chairs. No further action has been taken since.
'A Lot Of Responsibility To Go Around'
Paul acknowledges that Bush, himself, has not come out against arming pilots, but says the evidence is obvious.
"You have to infer from the neglect and lack of enthusiasm," the congressman observed, "that he is not on our side on this issue."
Libertarians are less forgiving, placing responsibility squarely on Bush, and issuing a warning.
"If another hijacking occurs, we're going to lay this at George W. Bush's feet," Getz concluded. "He has to accept responsibility for what he has done."
But Paul says pilots are only still flying unarmed because of a cultural and educational failure.
"We've been badgered and brainwashed by our schools and our media to be opposed to gun ownership. So it's Congress, it's the regulators, it's our presidents, it's our society and our lack of respect for the Second Amendment and the Constitution as a whole," Paul concluded. "There's a lot of responsibility to go around."
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewPolitics.asp?Page=\Politics\archive\200205\POL20020506a.html
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
FrontPageMagazine.com | May 7, 2002
IN OVERWHELMING NUMBERS the American people support proposals to arm pilots. The glaring exceptions are the airlines and the Bush administration. Public support extends across all segments of the population according to a survey performed for the Airline Pilots Association by the Winston Group. Meanwhile, in passing the Aviation and Transportation Security Act that President Bush signed last year, most members of Congress believed that they had signaled their strong support for arming pilots when they passed.
Thus the introduction of a bill by Congressmen Don Young (R-AK) and John Mica (R-FL) on May 1 to allow pilots to be armed should be unnecessary. Yet, since Congress gave the administration the authority to set the standards commercial airline pilots to carry firearms into the cockpit, it has become clear that the FAA has no intention of allowing firearms in the cockpit under any circumstances.
Secretary of Transportation Norman Y. Mineta has stonewalled, obfuscated, and now tries to foist the notion that stun guns are the "weapon" of choice in an airline cockpit. Mineta along with the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Director John McGaw, the former head of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms (BAATF) under Bill Clinton, are following not only their anti-gun biases to keep pilots disarmed, but are yielding to the airline companies, which are against arming pilots.
On May 2 Congressman Mica, chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure aviation subcommittee, held a hearing on his legislation. One of those invited to testify was Ronald J. Hinderberger, director of security at Boeing Commercial Airplanes. According to the New York Times, Hinderberger reassured the panel that even if there were a bullet hole in the fuselage or that if a bullet shattered a window "there would be little hazard to continued safe flight and landing." Meanwhile, across Capitol Hill, a group of four U.S. Senators led by Zell Miller (D-GA), held a press conference to show their support for arming airline pilots.
With the exception of the White House, there is great support in Washington for giving pilots the last chance to safeguard their airplane. The Winston survey shows across-the-board support for the position taken by the Airline Pilots Association (ALPA). According to the survey 75% of the general public supports arming pilots. The survey reveals solid support among all sex and age groups. In fact women favor it more strongly than men. Additionally the flying public would seriously consider changing their choice of airline if that airline did not allow armed pilots. Overall, 49% would switch their airline loyalty to one that permitted armed pilots. That's a number the airlines should consider as they lobby the administration to keep pilots unarmed. An even more interesting sidebar is that people who originally were opposed to arming pilots are changing their minds.
Congressman Don Young has spent many hours promoting these measures. On May 1, he made a full court press with the media: talk shows, TV shows, and print media. On Washington, DC's largest talk show station, WMAL, his eloquence and his knowledge of the issue even managed to turn around the host, Chris Core, who until hearing from Young had adamantly opposed to arming pilots. Yet, the most interesting part of the interview was when Core put Michael Barnes, the President of the Brady Campaign, formerly known as Handgun Control, Inc, on the air. To my surprise Barnes stated that even his group was not opposed to arming pilots.
Now that the Brady bunch has joined the millions of Americans who agree that pilots should be armed, what's stopping the administration from implementing the idea? The answer is simple: the airline industry, a former anti-gun Democratic Congressman, now Secretary of Transportation, and a former BATF Director.
It's odd that the airline industry supports the idea of an F-16 shooting down its airplane, yet opposes their pilots being able to defend the cockpit. In an Op-Ed for USA Today Congressman Mica stated, "aviation security is based on redundancy. As a last line of defense against hijackers, pilots need to have the right to be armed. It is unacceptable that our last line of defense today is an F-16 shooting down a hijacked passenger aircraft."
The Young-Mica legislation and a companion bill in the Senate look like they are on a fast track to being sent to President Bush. He should sign it and support arming pilots. As Senator Zell Miller, (D-GA) said in his keynote address at the NRA Annual meeting last month, "To President Bush and his Administration I say this -- We trust the pilot in the cockpit with our lives. It's time to trust him with a firearm!" http://www.frontpagemag.com/columnists/metaksa/2002/metaksa05-07-02.htm
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
Report by J.J. Johnson
Published 05. 6. 02 at 18:04 Sierra Time
WASHINGTON, D.C.---Citing a continued need to maximize airline security, a spokesman for the nation's largest pilots union Friday urged Congress to pass a bill introduced Wednesday that would mandate a program to allow pilots to carry firearms in the cockpit.
From 1961 to 2001, pilots were permitted to carry firearms
Ironically, the FAA revoked that regulation in July of 2001
"More than 3,000 people were murdered, billions of dollars of property damage was incurred, the nation's economy was rocked and is still suffering, thousands of people were laid off, and billions of dollars of new spending will be allocated to security both in this country and around the globe for years to come - all because eight pilots were killed. It is obvious, or should be, that protecting the flight deck and its occupants against hijackers is now tantamount to protecting our national economy," said Capt. Steve Luckey, security chairman for the Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA). Luckey was testifying at hearings by the House Aviation Subcommittee, which is looking into the question of arming pilots.
"We are convinced that the ailing airline industry, which is still profusely hemorrhaging red ink, could virtually disappear if another successful attack is launched against us. If the airline industry takes another downward spiral, it most certainly will harm hundreds of businesses as well," Luckey said.
"A gun in the cockpit could harm innocent bystanders"
- Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC)
Click on Photo For Full View
ALPA strongly supports the Arming Pilots Against Terrorism Act, HR-4635, sponsored by Don Young (R-AK) and John Mica (R-FL), which mandates a program for qualified, trained, volunteer pilots to be deputized as Federal Flight Deck Officers and carry firearms as a last line of defense against terrorism. Luckey's testimony offers reasons why this program is necessary and rebuttals to objections to firearms in the cockpit.
From 1961 to 2001, pilots were permitted to carry firearms. Many did so - and safely - during the Cuban hijackings of the 1970s. Ironically, the FAA revoked that regulation last July, shortly before the Sept. 11 attack.
Many pilots are former military personnel, where firearms were carried as part of survival gear. Unlike many police officers, commercial airline pilots are also given psychological screening each year, and had strict limitations on alcohol consumption before reporting for duty.
Luckey said that based on information from the Department of Justice, the Office of Homeland Defense, the Transportation Security Administration and other sources, the risk of another terrorist attack against airlines still exists. And the next attack would not be with box cutters, but with smuggled firearms or undetected explosives carried by terrorists.
Pentagon - September 11, 2001
A few miles from the District of Elenor Homes-Norton
"We're against the pilots having guns until we know that they're going to come out of the cockpit, into the cabin, to defend us and the passengers,"
-Jeff Zack - Associatoin of Flight Attendants
Even with a petition of 20,000 pilots, there are some that are still against the measure. "We're against the pilots having guns until we know that they're going to come out of the cockpit, into the cabin, to defend us and the passengers," said Jeff Zack, spokesman for the Association of Flight Attendants. "If there are no tools or training for flight attendants to protect themselves and passengers, what we end up with is planes getting to their destination with a bunch of dead people in the back."
Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC), said a gun in the cockpit could harm innocent bystanders. "We know guns in the homes are more likely to be used for killing relatives and for suicide," she said. "We have to consider guns in the cockpit might be used for more than the purpose intended."
Meanwhile, more flights are being added, and National Guardsmen will be removed from the nations airport at the end of may - just in time for the summer travel season.
http://www.sierratimes.com/02/05/07/arjj050702.htm
"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of a constitutional privilege." - Arkansas Supreme Court, 1878
Wasnt George Bush the president in July 2001, when pilots carrying firearms was prohibited? And didnt the WTC attack occur 2 months after pilots were prohibited from carrying firearms?
"Ladies and Gentlemen,-- introducing your pro-gun president GEORGE BUSH!"
Happiness is a warm gun
Happiness is a warm gun
Whining babies should fear a mere flea. While the baby whines just to hear himself roar, the flea devours the whining baby till he is no more!
Happiness is a warm gun
Happiness is a warm gun
Happiness is a warm gun