The Federal Aviation Administration is seeking comment from the general public about how to craft regulations that would permit pilots and other commercial airline crewmembers to carry firearms and less-than-lethal weapons as a way to beef up in-flight security.

The move comes amid requests from lawmakers, pilots and others who say arming aircraft personnel is the best way to prevent the kind of hijackings that led to the Sept. 11 attacks against the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.

The agency began soliciting comments regarding "Firearms, Less Than Lethal Weapons, and Emergency Services on Commercial Air Flights" Dec. 31, 2001. The commentary period closes Feb. 14.

"The FAA is requesting comments on issues related to pilots carrying firearms into the cockpit and flight deck crewmembers carrying less-than-lethal weapons on aircraft providing air transportation or intrastate air transportation," said a summary of the request.

"We are also requesting comments on issues related to provision of emergency services on commercial air flights during emergencies by law enforcement officers, firefighters and emergency medical technicians," said the request, which was submitted by Kent Stephens, the manager for the Air Carrier Operations Branch of the FAA's Air Transportation Division.

Already, the FAA – a division of the Transportation Department – has issued new security standards for cockpit doors.

"In response to President Bush's call to strengthen aircraft security," said a Jan. 11 press release, the agency "published new standards to protect cockpits from intrusion and small arms fire or fragmentation devices, such as grenades."

"The Aviation and Transportation Security Act authorizes the FAA to issue today's final rule that requires operators of more than 6,000 airplanes to install reinforced doors by April 9, 2003," the statement said.

FAA officials have praised the new regulations.

"Fortifying cockpit doors is a critical part of assuring the safety and security of our aviation system," said U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta.

"The FAA cut through red tape and the airlines fortified cockpit doors quickly following Sept. 11," added FAA Administrator Jane Garvey.

Yet airline pilot organizations, some lawmakers and civil rights groups want more. They applaud Congress' new law and the FAA's improved safety requirements, but they want the added protection of firearms and other non-lethal weapons in the cockpit.

"Both houses of Congress, as well as the Airline Pilots Association and Allied Pilots Association, have demonstrated support for providing pilots the means to effectively protect commercial aircraft from violent acts by terrorists," Sen. Robert Smith, R-N.H., said in a letter to Mineta last month.

"We believe that armed pilots are a first line of deterrence to terrorism, because terrorists will know that armed pilots will be behind that reinforced cockpit door to defend the aircraft," Smith wrote. "We further believe that armed pilots are the last line of defense against terrorism, because when all else fails, an armed pilot will be provided with the most effective means to disable a terrorist.

"Accordingly, we hope that you and the new undersecretary will move expeditiously to implement Section 128 [of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act]," he said.

In a separate letter sent to Mineta and signed by 60 lawmakers in the House, Rep. Don Young, R-Alaska, chairman of the Transportation Committee, said, "We hope that you and the new undersecretary will move expeditiously to implement Section 128 [of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act], in order that these indispensable provisions [allowing pilots to carry guns] can be carried out seamlessly and without delay. ..."

That section, according to Rep. Bob Schaffer, R-Colo., "addresses flight deck security and lays down the necessary guidelines for authorizing commercial pilots to carry firearms in the cockpits of their aircraft."

"Most of these guidelines, such as the authorization to carry a firearm, the appropriate type of firearm, and the level of training, specifically require the approval of the undersecretary of transportation for security, a newly created position with an individual you will be directly involved in nominating," Schaffer said in a letter to Mineta Dec. 12.

According to the FAA's "Request for comment" (see pdf version), Section 128 of the Aviation and Transportation Security Act says a pilot is authorized to carry a firearm into the cockpit if:

• The undersecretary for transportation security approves;
• The air carrier approves;
• The firearm is approved by the undersecretary; and
• The pilot has received proper training for the use of the firearm, as determined by the undersecretary.

A spokeswoman for the FAA told WorldNetDaily she couldn't discuss the progress of the commentary period because "once something is opened for comment, we don't discuss it because we don't want to influence" the outcome.

At the end of the "public process," the "comments will be reviewed and a decision will be made from there," she added.

Specifically, the FAA is asking:

1. Whether pilots and other flight crew members should carry firearms or less-than-lethal weapons, and if so, whether it should be on a voluntary basis;

2. Whether and how the weapons should be stored on the aircraft or carried on board;

3. The types and numbers of firearms that should be carried on aircraft for use by qualified pilots and the types of ammunition;

4. The amount and type of weapons training that [FAA] should require, including whether there should be initial and recurrent training; and

5. Whether the qualifications for using less-than-lethal weapons or firearms should be integrated into the existing systems for establishing and maintaining airman qualifications, such as pilot certificates and ratings.

Larry Pratt, executive director of Gun Owners of America, a gun-rights organization in Virginia, said he approved of pilots carrying guns but said the right shouldn't be limited to air crew.

"I think anybody with a concealed-carry permit should be allowed on board" with a gun, Pratt said in an interview. "In the past, the problem was that hijackers are the only ones with guns. I guess I don't mind if airport security X-rays my shoes for bombs, because that's not a defensive weapon and doesn't belong on a plane. My handgun is a defensive weapon and does belong" on board.

In talking to pilots, Pratt added, "we're not hearing anything different from them."

Also, he said the federal government should not try to second-guess airlines "with respect to the types and numbers of firearms which may be carried." Rather, he said, "this determination should be delegated to the airlines."

Gun Owners of America recommended the maintenance of airport-based armories, in which pilots could check weapons in and out before and after flights. Overseas, Pratt said, the maintenance of small armories would be even easier because there would be fewer American pilots flying in and out of foreign airports.

In November 2001, United Airlines announced it would arm its pilots with stun guns – electric "tasers" – to help prevent future hijackings. United lost two planes in the Sept. 11 attacks.

The tasers fire electronically charged cables that disable cockpit intruders and allow them to be subdued. Also, officials said the tasers would reduce the chances that a bullet would penetrate the aircraft or hit a passenger.

"United and its pilots believe tasers are an important addition to enhanced cockpit security. Tasers will incapacitate an attacker without endangering the airplane," said Andrew Studdert, the airline's chief operating officer.

United's announcement came a month after Phoenix, Ariz.-based airline Mesa Air Group, Inc., said it too would arm its pilots with tasers, "in conjunction with the FAA. ..."

"Traffic across the industry has dropped significantly since the attack of Sept. 11. We need to do everything we can to regain the confidence of our passengers in order to ensure the future of commercial aviation," said Mesa chief executive Jonathan Ornstein in an Oct. 18 statement. "We believe that enhancing on board security will go a long way toward reaching that goal."

Mesa said its own survey revealed that 85 percent of respondents said they'd choose an airline that provided in-flight security over one that didn't.

"Will someone please explain to me why it is too dangerous to let the airline pilots carry guns, but if the plane is hijacked our government's solution is to shoot it down with an Air Force F-16?" said Alan W. England of Sun City, Ariz. "This is a wonderful fix to a problem. Instead of killing one or two innocent people, the government would kill them all."

The Air Line Pilot's Association, the largest commercial pilot union in the nation with more than 66,000 members, has also called for arming pilots, using a special ammunition that can kill an attacker but not pierce the fuselage of an airliner.

Those wishing to submit comments can send them to:

Public Docket Office
Department of Transportation
400 7th Street SW, Room PL-401
Washington, D.C. 20590-0001

Comments can also be submitted through the Department of Transportation's website.

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