Copyright 2002 The San Diego Union-Tribune The San
Diego Union-Tribune
September 8, 2002, Sunday
SECTION: NEWS;Pg. A-9
LENGTH:
440 words
HEADLINE: Airlines want to see
validation before paying to arm pilots; Experts say guns just
one expense
BYLINE: Cynthia Wilson; ST. LOUIS
POST-DISPATCH
BODY: WASHINGTON -- If
a law is passed allowing U.S. commercial pilots to carry guns in cockpits, the
airlines will not pay any part of the expense without seeing studies or tests to
validate the program, said Mike Wascom, a spokesman for the Air Transport
Association.
"We will vigorously fight any proposal to
shoulder the airlines with the cost of such a program, including indirect
costs," Wascom said. "If Congress wants this program, if the pilots want it, let
them figure out how to pay for it."
Industry experts
say that if the House and Senate pass a reconciled version of their separate
bills, the nation's airlines will have to prepare themselves for another expense
they can't afford. The increased expense probably will be tied to training and
insurance.
As it stands, separate bills approved by the
Senate and House call for pilots to be adequately trained for gun use. A Senate
vote Thursday on an amendment to the homeland security bill also requires
self-defense training for flight attendants.
A law, if
passed by Congress, could automatically require airlines to retain more staff,
said George Hamlin, senior vice president of Global Aviation Associates, a
commercial-aviation consulting firm in Washington.
"If
people are going to be off in training they won't be flying," said Hamlin,
adding that the training requirement might even prevent furloughs in some
cases.
But few experts doubt that the expenses will
stop there for the cash-strapped airlines -- many of which have announced
restructuring plans and layoffs to trim costs.
The
industry, which was hard-hit by significantly higher insurance costs after the
terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, is likely to face even higher insurance premiums,
said John Heimlich, an association spokesman.
"The
premiums will get jacked up because of the risk," Heimlich said. "You may be
preventing the risk of a terrorist attack, but you're also introducing
additional risk on every flight because you're bringing munitions on board."
Heimlich said the industry already is shouldering costs
associated with reinforcing the cockpit doors -- an expense the association
estimates eventually will exceed $300 million for labor and materials alone. He
said the federal government has so far only approved $94 million in
reimbursement.
Wascom said the industry, which lost
nearly $3.8 billion the first half of the year, simply can't afford any added
expenses and it can't pass the cost of armed pilots on to customers.
"The market is not willing to support additional costs,
which result in higher airfares," Wascom said. "People will stop traveling."
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