First of all, anyone who is a pilot obviously had to go through a lot to become one. I guarantee there isn’t a single pilot who is stupid enough to have a “bad day” and go crazy. It’s a THOUSAND times more likely that 1 out of 100 passengers is going to be the crazy one. When that day comes, well I’m glad one crazy passenger died because our pilot shot him than all 100 of us dying in a horrific plane crash.

Plane marshals aren’t even on every plane, and what they’re paid and trained to do is have that weapon. Are you going to complain that there’s an air marshal on your flight because he’s holding a gun and might be having a bad day? No, idiot, because that’s what he’s trained to do.

You could eliminate the training and pay of all air marshals and require firearm licenses for pilots (etc). That eliminates the fact that there’s money being paid to only protect few, and protects every single plane.

DUHHHHH!!!

Remember the infamous incident of the DEA agent in the kid’s classroom, saying he’s the only one qualified enough to touch his gun safely, and a second later accidentally sets it off in the holster?
The same thing: A DAO-Only pistol, carried loaded and chambered.

TSA Holster CNN report with Paul Huebl
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pzzzcw27iGw&NR=1

I noticed that nobody’s answered the question:
>I haven’t heard of a single incident wherein a pilot was called upon to
>unholster his or her weapon in flight. If readers have a link to such a
>case, please send it my way.

July, 1954
the pilot: William Bonnell
The hijacker: fifteen year old Raymond Kuchenmeister, killed by the armed pilot.
Read more, for details, as I’m sure people will be asking how the pilot could shoot a kid.
The article’s called “Who would do such a thing?”, answering the common objection that armed people -anybody who’d go about armed- must be bloodthirsty thugs, itching for a chance…

http://www.keepandbeararms.com/information/XcIBViewItem.asp?ID=3510
Suggested Reading > Airplanes and Guns

And I haven’t seen any answers to the question by one respondent, about is it better for the terrorists to score a big victory by having the USAF shoot down a plane full of passengers?

And I for one don’t mind the idea of fellow passengers who’re trained & equipped and qualified, allowed to carry on their own. Give them reduced-price seating & breeze past security for that matter, and let the over-taxed federal air marshals take a nap and a later flight that’s not covered by crew or qualified passenger.
I know, all sorts of howls of indignation, but I personally am not afraid of my own family & friends, neighbors and co-workers, if they choose to train themselves to go armed.
Historic facts of civilians with concealed carry permits back me up. We -ourselves and each other- should trust and look out for each other.

BTW: can anybody answer why air crews should have to go through security checks at all?

Regarding the oft-heard mantra that the job of the pilots should be to “Fly the plane!” — I hate to burst anybody’s bubble, but I have news for you: If there’s a terrorist in the cockpit, AIN’T NOBODY GONNA BE FLYIN’ THE PLANE!!! You see, flying a plane requires mental and physical skills, and definitely requires one to keep his mind on what he is doing — which is quite challenging when he is fighting for his life to keep his throat from being slit. When a terrorist bursts into the cockpit, if he is not subdued within the first 20 seconds or so, it’s all over — for everybody on board. By the way, when you consider the fact that the cockpit geometry is such that a pilot cannot stand, but his attacker can, that the attacker has the element of surprise on his side, that he has trained for years for this moment, and that he generally has a 20 to 40 year advantage over his victims — unless the pilot has the ability to employ lethal force, it is no contest!

If you truly believe that pilots are so immature and undisciplined that having a gun is going to “tempt him to open the cockpit door and play Dirty Harry,” then I would suggest that you never set foot in an airliner. Despite hundreds of thousands of flights being protected by Federal Flight Deck Officers, it has NEVER happened. Pilots have undergone years of training to do what they do. If you are undisciplined, you don’t get to work in this profession. Many of our pilots are former military pilots who carried nuclear bombs. When was the last time you heard of a military pilot going nuts and nuking Chicago? End of discussion.

Regarding “never open the cockpit door.” Okay. But you’d better pass a law that says pilots must never need to eat, drink, or go to the bathroom, and find a way to enforce it. Many flights are four to five hours long (plus time on the ground.) Most of mine are eight to thirteen hours. How long can YOU go without nourishment or using the lavatory? If it’s not a good idea for a driver to go more than a couple hours without getting out of the seat and stretching his legs to getting the blood circulating, do you think it’s wise for a pilot to be totally sedentary for six hours? When it’s the end of the flight and he needs to be at his most alert as he makes an approach with a low ceiling, strong gusty crosswinds, or poor visibility (or all of the above), do you want him to feel as lethargic as YOU do after sitting that long in a cramped cabin? And do you want him to be thinking about what he’s doing, or worrying that his bladder is about to burst?

Regarding violent aircraft maneuvers to stop would-be terrorists, you are assuming that they will somehow communicate their intention BEFORE bursting into the cockpit. That may have worked before 9/11. Not any more. Terrorists may be evil, but they are not stupid, and they do adapt. The element of surprise will definitely be a factor in the future. Another consideration is that airliners are generally only stressed for up to 2.5 Gs. Not too good an idea to try to save the day but unfortunately rip the wings off the plane. And even if you don’t, you’d probably injure many other people on board. And if they had already made it into the cockpit, it wouldn’t work anyway. They’d just hang on for a few moments and THEN slit your throat. By the way, two Gs isn’t going to bring down a well trained 20-year-old terrorist. That’s the same as him carrying his buddy on his back. Not the easiest thing, but not that great a challenge for a fanatic that’s in good shape.

Regarding the reinforced doors — that’s great as long as the terrorist is on the OUTSIDE of the door. If he can get through the door when it opens (and you can probably think of a multitude of ways to accomplish that), then he is now protected from any passengers trying to save the day. The protection works both ways.

Just some food for thought. There are many ideas out there that sound great but will not stand up to scrutiny when you think the problem through.