Tell
the Senate: "Let's Finish the Job on Arming Pilots"
In the 107th
session of Congress, the Citizens Committee for the Right
to Keep and Bear Arms supported a bill signed into law by
President George W. Bush that allowed airline pilots to
carry firearms on passenger aircraft.
The bill passed with broad bipartisan support and granted
commercial passenger pilots the ability to more effectively
defend their cockpits and control their aircrafts in case
of a terrorist attack.
Kentucky Senator
Jim Bunning has introduced a bill that would allow cargo
pilots to defend themselves and their aircraft with the
same vigilance that the government affords pilots of passenger
aircraft. S. 516: The Arming Cargo Pilots Against
Terrorism Act would make an additional 12,000 cargo
pilots eligible to defend the cockpit and protect Americans
from another air-to-land airplane attack.
Why arm cargo
pilots?
The fact of
the matter is that cargo planes carry just as much fuel
as commercial airliners--the 747 Freighter aircraft is the
largest commercial airplane in use--making cargo aircraft
just as dangerous as passenger aircraft in the event of
a terrorist hijacking. Cargo planes themselves, and the
individuals they transport, are not subject to current screening
standards applied to passenger aircraft.
Also, Air Marshals
are not present on cargo flights and the same hijack-risk-level
exists whether we're talking about passenger aircrafts or
cargo aircrafts.
Under S. 516,
cargo pilots would be made eligible to carry their licensed
firearm only after undergoing and passing appropriate background
checks, screening processes, and firearm training: the same
standard the law applies toward pilots of passenger aircraft.
The government
was acting responsibly when it allowed passenger aircraft
pilots to carry firearms as part of our ongoing effort to
prevent another tragedy like September 11th. Write
your two Senators and urge them to support and vote in favor
of S. 516: The Arming Cargo Pilots Against Terrorism Act:
a bill that would protect Americans--in the air
and on the ground--from terrorist acts involving all types
of commercial aircraft.
You can email
your senator by going to www.ccrkba.org and clicking on
'Contact your Senator' on the left-hand side of the page.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Copyright © 2003 Citizens Committee for the Right to
Keep and Bear Arms, All Rights Reserved.
Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms
James Madison Building
12500 N.E. Tenth Place
Bellevue, WA 98005 Voice: 425-454-7012
Toll Free: 800-426-4302
FAX: 425-451-3959
email: info@ccrkba.org
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