"Airlines Change Procedures for Flying, Tighten Rules on Pilots Leaving Cockpits"

Wednesday, September 26, 2001    

Airlines Change Procedures for Flying, Tighten Rules on Pilots Leaving
Cockpits
By SCOTT MCCARTNEY, DAN MICHAELS and SUSAN CAREY 
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL


As regulatory officials debate the safest way to keep pilots in control
of aircraft, airlines already have changed flying procedures and
tightened rules on pilots leaving cockpits in the wake of the hijackings
and terrorist attacks earlier this month.

A number of ideas have been proposed, from arming pilots with weapons to
placing more federal sky marshals on flights, and new Transportation
Department rules are expected eventually. Some airlines have curtailed
the ability for pilots from other carriers to hitch rides on their
cockpit jumpseats, a common industry courtesy. But already, AMR Corp.'s
American Airlines is requiring its captains to collect all keys to
cockpit doors from flight attendants and off-duty pilots to ensure that
keys aren't available in the cabin during flight.

American, which had two planes hijacked Sept. 11 by terrorists
apparently wielding knives, also has instructed pilots to always confirm
who is knocking on a cockpit door through the peephole and to never
leave the cockpit, even in the face of an emergency. On one of the two
American flights hijacked, two flight attendants were killed by
attackers before the hijackers gained access to the cockpit, people
close to the airline said. A spokesman for American confirmed that
procedures had been changed by the time the airline resumed flights
after a two-day shutdown, but declined to comment on most specifics.
"Collecting cockpit keys was one of the first things we did," the
spokesman said.

Pilots said that American and other carriers have long told pilots to
stay in the cockpits, although they are frequently called upon to help
handle air-rage incidents. Indeed, several airlines equip cockpits with
flexible handcuffs.

Now, however, "It's more emphatic: Don't leave the cockpit. Don't open
the door," one airline official said.

A spokesman for the Air Line Pilots Association representing Northwest
Airlines pilots said the new practice is to keep the cockpit doors
closed and locked at all times, "regardless of what is happening in the
cabin."

He said his group of 6,600 pilots supports ALPA International's view
that pilots should have the ability to carry firearms in the cockpit if
they choose to do so. He also said his members back the concept of
retrofitting planes with more secure cockpit doors.

Northwest tightened security by requiring all flight attendants to be in
uniform if they wish to visit their airline's office at the Detroit
airport, according to the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union,
which represents Northwest attendants.

Jon Weaks, president of Southwest Airlines Pilots' Association, said the
Dallas carrier has also made some procedural changes to its pilots'
manual but wouldn't discuss specifics. He did say the pilots made
recommendations, including better communications between pilots and
flight attendants, better communication between flight crews and
air-traffic controllers and the company, enhanced training and better
on-board equipment. "The company has implemented some of our
recommendations and some of their own," he said.

In Europe and around the world, aviation regulators have long left the
decision on whether to close and lock the cockpit door up to pilots, but
that is now changing, too.

The International Civil Aviation Organization, the global air safety
body that is currently holding its once-every-three-years meeting in
Montreal, is reviewing its position and is likely to recommend
reinforcing cockpit doors and improving locks.

The International Federation of Air Line Pilots Unions, a London-based
umbrella group for pilots unions from around the globe, is now
"advocating having doors reinforced to withstand a certain level of
attack, to keep most ordinary hijackers out," said Herb Meyer, IFALPA's
chief technical officer and chairman of its security committee.
Following the Sept. 11 attacks, Britain's Civil Aviation Authority
mandated that cockpit doors be closed and locked. Germany's Lufthansa
said Tuesday it will reinforce cockpit doors.

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