Fri, Apr 18, 2008
FFDOA Plans To Fight Captain's Termination
The US Airways captain who accidentally discharged his gun in
the cockpit of an airliner inflight is being fired by the
airline.
As ANN reported, Capt. James
Langenhahn was suspended from the airline three days after the
March 22 incident, which occurred as the Airbus A319 he was
piloting descended through 8,000 feet to land in Charlotte, NC.
No one in the cockpit was injured, but the bullet did leave a
hole in the inner and outer fuselage skins, the outer hole visible
under the port-side cockpit window.
Langenhahn is a member of the Transportation Security
Administration's Federal Flight Deck Officer (FFDO) program, which
allows pilots to carry loaded firearms onboard commercial aircraft
as a protective measure against terrorism. The pilot told
authorities he was stowing the firearm, a .40 caliber semiautomatic
H&K USP, when it fired.
A spokesman for the Federal Flight Deck Officers Association
told CNN US Airways has begun the process to terminate Langenhahn's
contract with the carrier... which the group plans to fight. "This
was accidental not intentional," said Mike Karn. "This is not the
way to treat a long-term pilot."
A spokesperson for US Airways declined to comment on the matter,
which was the first such public incident of its kind since the FFDO
program was created in 2002. Thousands of commercial pilots have
been trained to carry firearms onboard their planes,
The TSA is now investigating the matter... which will no doubt
include the question of why Langenhahn had the gun out of its
holster in the first place.
More News
Chaff Thin, narrow metallic reflectors of various lengths and frequency responses, used to reflect radar energy. These reflectors, when dropped from aircraft and allowed to drift d>[...]
“Today, XB-1 took flight in the same hallowed airspace where the Bell X-1 first broke the sound barrier in 1947. I’ve been looking forward to this flight since founding>[...]
“Teaming up with the EAA and Berlin Express for this event in Cincinnati will give warbird fans a unique opportunity to see the aircraft that helped defend freedom and gave t>[...]
Hazardous Weather Information Summary of significant meteorological information (SIGMET/WS), convective significant meteorological information (convective SIGMET/WST), urgent pilot>[...]
Aero Linx: The Nebraska Aeronautics Commission The Nebraska Aeronautics Commission was created by the 1935 Legislature to oversee the development of aviation in the state. The Comm>[...]