Manual Provides Self-Defense Advice For Frequent Flyers

A cup of coffee. A magazine. A necktie. A can of soda.

These are all run-of-the-mill items in the cabin of any commercial passenger flight. But in this new age of threat and counter threat, they are also weapons that could foil an attempt to hijack the plane you're on.

So says a trio of authors who've written "Never Again," a how-to book aimed at ensuring no aircraft is turned into a guided weapon of mass destruction ever again.

"This isn't a whack-em-up, bang-em-up book," said American Airlines Capt. Mark Bogosian, one of the authors. He was quoted by the Dallas Morning News. "We're giving you the tools necessary to analyze a situation, then take an appropriate action."

In terms that most of us can understand, the book, which was published in March, outlines ways to recognize threats and respond appropriately. Bogosian's co-writers are veteran law enforcement trainer Michael Regan and Tommy Hamilton, the DFW SWAT team commander and a government trainer specializing in in-flight self-defense.

The book recognizes aircraft security in the new age. Pilots may be armed. Sky marshals could be sitting next to you incognito. And while the authors don't by any means advocate trying to overrule one of these people, even the air marshal service is appreciative.

"If [an air marshal] requests assistance from passengers, it would be nice to know that possibly some of these passengers might have self-defense training," said federal air marshal spokesman Dave Adams.

Fighting back is what made heroes out of the passengers aboard UAL Flight 93, which crashed in a southern Pennsylvania field. Cockpit tapes and phone calls from those on board indicated the passengers fought back against the hijackers of that flight on 9/11, perhaps saving countless other lives in the nation's capitol.

The book does have its critics. Among them, according to the Morning News, former NWA security director Douglas Laird. "I think the way they overcame the people [on Flight 93] was sheer force of number, not because they read a book in how to do a judo move," he told the paper. "You need hundreds of hours of training, not three or four hours, and you have to practice regularly."

The book does talk about ways to disarm a hijacker. It also offers ways for those not initiated in self-defense tactics to fight back.

Wing a soda can. Roll up a magazine and turn it into a baton. Use the drink cart as a battering ram. These are just a few of the tactics "Never Again" advocates.

The authors do make a point with their book. Just ask Regan. "I can tell you what would happen if passengers don't get involved. You have the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. When passengers get involved, you have a flight that crashes in Pennsylvania, instead of the Capitol Building or the White House."

So far, about 1,800 copies of "Never Again" have been sold worldwide.

FMI: www.brownbooks.com/authors/bogosian