Access Control
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The Air Line Pilots Association (ALPA) has filed a formal petition to the U.S. Department of Transportation, requesting new rules to allow pilots to carry firearms in cockpits under specific conditions.

Under the ALPA proposal, the arming of pilots would be voluntary. In order to carry a weapon, the pilot would have to submit to background checks, be given training equivalent to that given to law enforcement officers, and to be deputized as a federal law enforcement officer.

"An armed flight crewmember would be the last line of defense and would be able to protect his/her crew, the passengers and, ultimately, people and property on the ground," ALPA member Capt. Duane Woerth said in the petition.

A recent internal ALPA poll revealed that 73 percent of its pilots favor allowing firearms in the cockpit.

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