US Airways Pilot's Gun Fires In Cockpit

"Accidental Discharge" First Time Shot Fired Under Federal Armed Pilots Program

(AP)  A gun belonging to the pilot of a US Airways plane went off as the aircraft was on approach to land in North Carolina over the weekend, the first time a weapon issued under a federal program to arm pilots was fired, authorities said.

The "accidental discharge" Saturday aboard Flight 1536 from Denver, Colorado, to Charlotte, North Carolina, did not endanger the aircraft or the 124 passengers, two pilots and three flight attendants aboard, said Greg Alter of the Federal Air Marshal Service.

"We know that there was never any danger to the aircraft or to the occupants on board," Alter said Monday.

It is the first time a pilot's weapon has been fired on a plane under a program created after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to allow pilots and others to use a firearm to defend against any act of air piracy or criminal violence, he said.

The federal Transportation Security Administration is investigating how the gun discharged and is being assisted by the Air Marshal Service, Alter said. Officials did not say where the bullet hit.

The service declined to release additional details.

Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Mike Fergus said his agency is also investigating to make sure that the plane is safe. The Airbus A319 has been removed from service, the airline said.

The TSA initially opposed the Flight Deck Officer program to arm and train cockpit personnel. Agency officials worried that introducing a weapon to commercial flights was dangerous and that other security improvements made it unnecessary. Congress and pilots backed the program.

"The TSA has never been real supportive of this program," said Mike Boyd, who runs the Colorado-based aviation consulting firm The Boyd Group. "It's something I think Congress kind of put on them."

Pilots must volunteer, take a psychological test and complete a weeklong firearms training program run by the government to keep a gun in the cockpit.

Boyd said he supports the program to arm pilots, saying, "if somebody who has the ability to fly a 747 across the Pacific wants a gun, you give it to them." But he said Saturday's incident could have been much worse.

"If that bullet had compromised the shell of the airplane, i.e., gone through a window, the airplane could have gone down," he said.

[guthbr]

as a student training to become an airline pilot i support the federal flight deck officer program it takes years of training and skill to learn to fly jets these guys arent stupid they can handle guns......and as for the comment that the shot could have brought down the plane...it would take more than a bullet hole

[bobgeh]

what an idiot. A pilot should fly a plane. With a locked crew door, a pilot has no need to have a weapon unless the first officer demands the last tuna salad sandwich, then, blaze away.

This was very shrewd! The pilot gave the plane a warning shot.

[gunownerdan]

The notion of the "responsible gun owner" who "defends himself with his gun, often without firing a shot" is merely a fevered wet-dream
Posted by GladImNotOJ

Obviously you are quite ignorant of the facts.
There are a minimum of 80,000 defensive gun uses(DGU''s) in America each year.
This means every day at least 219 people use a gun in self defense to stop crime and save lives.
Some criminologists say the number is in fact MUCH higher!
It can be impossible to get an accurate count because police are rarely contacted since most of the time no shots are fired and no one gets injured.
Dangerous criminals tend to change their minds pretty fast when there is a chance they will be shot!

[naucoming4u]

The more people there are with guns, the more people will be killed by guns. The notion of the "responsible gun owner" who "defends himself with his gun, often without firing a shot" is merely a fevered wet-dream of those frustrated impotent losers who long for the cold, hard shaft.

Posted by GladImNotOJ at 10:37 PM : Mar 25, 2008
...........

"Live by the sword, and you shall die by the sword."

The above statement coming from the same immortal being that the vast majority of gun nuts proclaim to worship. Sadly, that is yet another page in THEIR bible that has been ripped out.

Modern translation:

"Live by the gun, and you shall die by the gun."

[MekhongKurt]

I''m all for armed pilots. After all, this is the *first time* there has been such an incident. Captains at sea have the right to be armed, and to arrest. Why should pilots be any different?

I will say there should be refresher training throughout the time a person flies, at least on a semi-annual basis. (Quarterly would be even better.) And that''s not to say anything whatsoever against pilots. Several friends are professional pilots across the spectrum: civilian and military, passenger jet, cargo, bomber, and fighter.

Let''s put it this way: better a trained pilot with a weapon (who is highly unlikely to go nuts) than an unarmed air crew when a hijacker makes his (her) move.

[country73436]

You know one would think the same coustesy would be extended to the hundreds of thousands, millions of Truck Drivers who go back and forth across this Nation transporting & delivering the goods we need to survive, as well as those we enjoy. If you knew the places they have to park to sleep, load & unload. I fully support requiring training and licensing to have this privilege. I would even support a measure that requires one to only be allowed to carry "a firearm" registered & licensed to the individual for this porpose. This registration & licensing process should include ballistics for the firearm, that way if the privlege is abused and misused, you can link it quickly to the owner. If I recall the Federal Government asked for the Truckers help in identifying terrorists who might use truckloads of HAZMAT for a terrorist attack. They asked them to help protect the Country... Yet they do not extend the privelege to them to help them protect themselves from those who intentionally mean harm to them...

[country73436]

You know one would think the same coustesy to carry a firearm to protect oneself would be extended to the hundreds of thousands, millions of Truck Drivers who go back and forth across this Nation daily to delivery the goods we need to survive, as well as enjoy. If you knew the places they have to park to sleep, load & unload. I fully support requiring training and licensing to have this privilege. I would even support a measure that requires one to only be allowed to carry "a firearm" registered & licensed to that individual, the process of which includes ballistics collection for the firearm, that way if the privlege is abused and misused, you can link it quickly to the owner. If I recall the Federal Government asked for the Truckers help in identifying terrorists who might use truckloads of HAZMAT for a terrorist attack. They were asked to help protect their Country... But never offered the privlege to protect themselves from the intended harm of others...

[toolmangler-2009]

These stupid adds are going to put an end to this comment board

[andor3]

"Well I guess this incident shoots that theory down."

brilliant! hehe trumped all the long-winded gun nut rants. they make no sense anyway... like a gun going off in an aircraft is not a bad thing. right.

[incog-nito]

Maybe he just wanted to get some fresh air.

[erasmus6]

"Oops! Pentagon Admits Missile Mix-up"

I just read this other article and now this one.

Just out of curiosity, is there anyone down there that isn''t incompetent?

Well, jumkey you didn''t answer the question. What would you do?

[jumkey]

Boy you gun nuts are long winded.

Were ever do you find the time to shoot up churches and schoolyards?

Post 4 of 4
Sorry gun haters, violence has been increasing for years, and I have always thought about these things as if MY family was in the middle of a shooting like at the malls. Those women were not deserving of death, my wife and kid is not. I would kill to save them, and I would hate the shooter for putting me in that position I do not use the word hate lightly. When you ramble on about how wrong or immoral it is to have a gun, tell me, you kids goes to the mall arcade, and an armed jerk puts a gun to their heads with every intention to pull the trigger, what would you do?

Post 3 of 4
Before you ask, yes I could, after I answered a couple of questions for myself. My personal point of contention is how long would it take me to do that, and would my answers be correct. More than likely, my questions would be answered within a couple of seconds, before I could get into a shooting position. Some of the questions are: %u201Cis this for real?%u201D, %u201Cam I looking at the shooter?%u201D, %u201Cwhat%u2019s the backdrop?%u201D(what%u2019s to stop my missed shots), %u201Cdo I have to?%u201D (meaning will there be any more deaths if I do nothing)

Post 2 of 4
A kid walks into a mall and starts shooting shoppers. I believe that a couple of women were killed and 2-5 other shoppers wounded. Don%u2019t quote me on the numbers as I really don%u2019t remember. What I do remember is one of the wounded was a salesclerk with a CCR and a gun went into the shootout to supposedly to save people. For reasons never mentioned, HE PUT HIS WEAPON DOWN, and was shot, and paralyzed for life. Maybe he thought he could talk the shooter out? Hardly, Maybe the gun went off accidentally the first time, but that is proven false by the other shots. This clerk had no business carrying a gun. He was not ready to us it when required. Most people are like that. They think it%u2019s easy to point and click. They never have had slugs whipping by them, don%u2019t understand the results, either caused by themselves, or by others shooting at them.

post 1 of 4
Some more thoughts. One bullet bringing down an airliner by itself has been discussed. Proven false by Mythbusters. There are new slugs out there just for Air Marshals, they shatter into dust when impacting a hard surface, but penetrate flesh. Unknown if this round was used. More importantly, no one has discussed the most important aspect of a person carrying a weapon, the ability to use it when needed. I believe in gun control, if the weapon is in my hands, it%u2019s under control. I was taught this the hard way, in %u201CNam. Since then I have given it much thought, and even had a mall shooting last year in Seattle to bring it home.

[scottyusa]

Boyd said he supports the program to arm pilots, saying, "if somebody who has the ability to fly a 747 across the Pacific wants a gun, you give it to them."

Well I guess this incident shoots that theory down.

[billorights]

The pilot doesn''''t need a gun. He has the ability to completely incapacitate everyone on the plan that''''s not buckled in by executing a few +1.1 to -0.1 G dives/climbs - Posted by BigChiefTB

Great idea! A few barrel-rolls at Mach-3 in a 767 should be lots of fun. Just tell everyone but the terrorist to buckle-up, and off you go!

[bigchieftb]

Gun owners think that the way to solve all crime issues is to arm more people. Stupid.
1: If a gun discharges in a plane it did endanger someone, unless there was an effective backstop, and the pilot was in control of the firearm. Obviously he was not in control of the firearm.
2: The pilot doesn''t need a gun. He has the ability to completely incapacitate everyone on the plan that''s not buckled in by executing a few +1.1 to -0.1 G dives/climbs

The pilot''s job is to *FLY THE PLANE*

It would make more sense to arm the stewardesses.