FFDOA Pushes For Permission To Wear Guns Outside Cockpit

Everyone knows that pilots who receive certain training are now allowed to carry guns into the cockpits of the aircraft they fly. Fewer of us probably knew there is a Federal Flight Deck Officer Association to represent them. The association is lobbying for relaxed restrictions which would allow armed pilots to carry their weapons outside the cockpits, including when they're out of uniform and riding as passengers in the cabins of airliners.

Association President Marcus Flagg observes, "That would put us in line with standard law enforcement." In discussing the issue with the Sun Sentinel, he declined to say how many pilots participate in the program, but said the number of armed pilots is just behind the number of FBI agents, which is about 13,800. In justification of the push for the change, Flagg notes that there are five times as many armed pilots as federal air marshals.

TSA says the restriction on carrying guns outside the cockpit are in place to protect the traveling public. The paper reports weapons experts say the policy likely is intended to eliminate the possibility of a troublemaker taking a gun from pilot or of an accidental discharge. Flagg counters that pilots are trained to minimize those risks before being authorized to carry. he also says the restrictions are discouraging many pilots who might otherwise participate in the program.

TSA disagrees. Spokeswoman Kimberly Thompson of the Federal Air Marshal Service says, "Interest in the program and participation both remain strong. There are no shortages of applicants."

Some law enforcement officers are expressing the same disdain for armed pilots in airliner cabins that they expressed when TSA employees were issued uniforms and badges which made them look like actual police. One comments to the Sun Sentinel, "I went through a one day FAA course that taught me how to put an airplane on autopilot and evacuate and aircraft safely. This does not make me a pilot. These guys go through five days of firearms training that deal with cockpit tactics. This does not make them law enforcement officers. Keep them in the cockpit."

FMI: www.ffdoa.org