Report: Air Marshal Program Dwindling

The U.S. air marshals program is unable to cover its targets number of flights because of lack of agents, sources tell the Christian Science Monitor.

The Transportation Security Administration disputed the allegations, which the Monitor, in a report Wednesday, attributed to unnamed officials involved in the air marshals program.

Those officials told the newspaper "the public is at risk" because of a lack of marshals on planes.

Air marshals were dispatched in 1968 in response to hijackings but the service had only 33 active marshals on Sept. 11, 2001, the Monitor said. Congress ordered the programs increased to some 5,000 agents and thousands of law-enforcement officials sought to join, the newspaper said.

However, many became disillusioned by operating rules, training and what was described to the Monitor as a "top-heavy management," and the service, which totaled about 4,800 in 2002 has begun to shrink.

While the TSA will not confirm staffing figures for security reasons a spokesman told the Monitor there is a good chance holiday fliers in the United States will have a marshal on their planes. The TSA spokesman also said the organization has already addressed many of the marshals' concerns.

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