Pilots agree deal on air marshals
An agreement on the use of air marshals on flights to the US has been
reached with a major carrier, the British Airline Pilots Association has
said.
The deal with the unnamed airline puts pilots in control and could be
adopted across the industry, the union added.

It had urged all pilots to refuse to fly if armed guards are on board, as it
fears they could be a safety risk.

The new agreement means the marshals would report to the captain and only
carry certain types of weapon.

Balpa told BBC News Online that it was still opposed to the principle of air
marshals, but that the deal allayed its most serious concerns.

A spokesman said: "Putting air marshals on planes makes it more dangerous to
fly in our opinion and that of most pilots and airlines in the world."

News of the deal came as it emerged that Sweden has reached a deal with the
US allowing its planes to fly without air marshals.

Captain and crew

The union said the agreement with the UK airline would improve the safety of
passengers if a marshal was on board its planes.

It included: Captain and cabin crew to be told when sky marshals are on
board, who they are and where they sit Air marshals to be in regular contact
with the captain during the flight Captain to be in charge at all times Only
certain types of weapon to be used Training of air marshals, insurance cover
and legal liability of crew to be agreed with Balpa

Jim McAuslan, general secretary of Balpa, said: "I would not describe the
agreement as a victory, but commonsense."

Emergency summit

Balpa threatened to ground some flights to the US after the UK Government
announced the introduction of the marshals.


We will dictate this, otherwise we won't fly, it's as simple as that
Balpa
The US said it would insist that the guards are put on certain flights,
which would not otherwise be allowed to fly to or from its airports, or to
enter its airspace.

Balpa called for an emergency world summit of airline pilots to consider the
demand.

The union, which hopes other airlines will adopt the deal, has said: "We
want a written protocol, an agreement, on when and how armed guards should
be deployed."

The spokesman warned: "We will dictate this, otherwise we won't fly, it's as
simple as that."

'Why fly?'

Balpa, which has accused the UK Government of failing to resist what it sees
as a US policy, dismissed claims the marshals may have been flying since
Monday.

It believed no flights had yet had an air marshal on board.

The spokesman said they will only be deployed "in response to specific
threats, which will make a lot of pilots and members of the public say 'if
there's a known threat, why are we flying?'".

Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/uk/3359267.stm

Published: 2003/12/31 13:02:06 GMT