Sky is Not Limit for Air Marshals

Feb. 2, 2007
In Orlando and elsewhere, though, air marshals are more frequently being used on the ground. "It's much better to spot and solve problems on the ground rather than at 30,000 feet."

Jan. 31 -- Peter Caro was about to fly home to Pennsylvania after a business conference here earlier this month when he collapsed near a security checkpoint at Orlando International Airport.

An unlikely rescuer came to his aid: a federal air marshal -- part of the covert force best known for patrolling the skies.

In Orlando and elsewhere, though, air marshals are more frequently being used on the ground.

"As our experience level increased and as the threat evolved we've come up with ways to be a little bit more proactive," said William Reese, special agent in charge of the air marshal service's Orlando field office. "It's much better to spot and solve problems on the ground rather than at 30,000 feet."

Reese said he now has air marshals designated to patrol the airport terminal in addition to flights.

And one marshal was in just the right place when Caro, 49, suffered a heart attack.

The marshal, who is trained in CPR, was the first to get to Caro and began chest compressions while directing another person nearby to begin mouth-to-mouth breathing.

The Transportation Security Administration requested the marshal's name be withheld for security reasons.

TSA Officer Tim Fitzgerald, who is also trained in CPR, heard a call for help as he was screening baggage and quickly responded to take over mouth-to-mouth breathing from the first volunteer.

"His lips were turning blue," Fitzgerald, 28, said of Caro when he arrived at his side.

An Orlando Police officer arrived several minutes later with a portable heart defibrillator and the air marshal used the device to restart Caro's heart.

This week Caro is back home in Pennsylvania after surgery and a hospital stay in Florida.

"These guys basically saved my life," Caro said.

Reese said the air marshals' terminal assignments often include simply blending in to the crowd and "observing human behavior" and, in this case, jumping in to save a life.

"We're real gratified and proud that he acted the way he did," Reese said.

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