Two pilots groups and key members of Congress are blasting the Transportation Security Administration for moves they fear could delay arming pilots. Last week, the TSA fired Willie Ellison, the head of the TSA academy, despite high praise by the pilots who received firearms training. This week, the TSA revealed plans to move the training from Georgia to New Mexico. ”It’s one more bureaucratic disaster devised by those who want to make this more complex and expensive than it has to be,” said Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., head of the House aviation subcommittee. ”I don’t know what their ulterior motive is, but it is very frustrating.” Congress authorized guns in cockpits last fall over the objections of the Bush administration and the airline industry. The law provides training for airline pilots in firearms, hand-to-hand combat and legal issues. Pilots are then deputized as federal officers and allowed to use deadly force in defense of their cockpits. The first class of 44 pilots graduated in April. Full Story
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