ARMED AIRLINE PILOTS

Tony Stark

Background- September 11th, 2001

- Planes hijacked

- Attacked US buildings

- New outlook on safety, especially air security

Homeland Security Bill-November 26,2001

-Established Department of Homeland Security, under DHS, the Transportation

Security Administration (TSA)-Arming Pilots Against Terrorism Act

-Federal Flight Deck Officer Program

FFDO Program- Program which allows specially trained pilots to carry a

concealed firearm during flight- Serve as “last line of defense” - Goal: Never allow terrorists to take over aircraft

Two Sides- Those for the FFDO

program (believe it is necessary)

- Those against the FFDO program (believe it is an unnecessary risk)

- Need to find common ground

- Everyone shares common goal of safety

Those For the FFDO- Don Young, Chairman of the House of Transportation and

Infrastructure Committee:- “…we now face a possible situation where the

Department of Defense may be forced to make the difficult decision of having our own Air Force shoot down a plane full of innocent passengers due to a terrorist takeover.”

- Far better alternative to taking innocent lives- Do not dispute possible dangers- Application process far to inconvenient

Against the FFDO• Job related stress, not fit for a firearm• Dr. Amy L. Fraher, a Senior Lecturer in Organisation

Studies, retired US Navy Commander and Naval aviator, over 6,000 flight hours without a single mishap

• “… if the pilot does not accomplish the task, to transport people and cargo safely from one location to another, chances are quite likely they might die trying. Few jobs create stakes this high.”

• Misfires in cockpit, produce hole in fuselage, take plane down

• Already have Federal Air Marshals

Middle Ground- Clearly a new system needs

to be put into place- Have easier application

process- Still allow armed pilots- Change would be from firearm

to Taser- Much safer, would not have

possibility of misfire, still able to control suspect

- Allows for questioning of subject by proper authorities once on ground

Works Cited• Department of Homeland Security. "No Fast Draws in the

Cockpit." 17 Dec. 2008. Web. 2 Apr. 2012.• Fraher, Amy L. "Flying the Friendly Skies: Why US

Commercial Airline Pilots Want to Carry Guns." Human Relations. Sage Publications, 1 May 2004. Web. 02 Apr. 2012

• Paddock, Catharine. "Study Suggests Taser Use By US Police Is Safe." Medical News Today.

MediLexicon International, 09 Oct. 2007. Web. 02 Apr. 2012.

• Wilson Research. LexisNexis. Rep. 15 May 2002. Web. 2 Apr. 2012.

Comments• Overall Comments: Why didn’t you give us this good a

treatment of your subject on the page? I found the Presentation a winner, and your Response Team clearly concurs. There’s a viable balance of pros and cons — which takes into account, unlike on the paper, the problem of putting a bullet hole in a plane’s fuselage. There are appropriate visuals and pertinent quotes, from people who count as authorities, attached to each important turn of the argument. Also you handled the business of voice and body language effectively, though I agree with the Team that you rushed at times. The Mediation arrived, in this context, like a logical conclusion, adapting the latest technology to good use. Nice job with the questions too — maybe you have a natural gift for presentation. A or 95.