American Airlines' flight attendants have denounced a proposal by the Transportation Security Administration to end a ban on certain sharp items, including some knives, on commercial flights.
Officials with the Association of Professional Flight Attendants spoke out Thursday afternoon against the proposal. Tommie Hutto-Blake, the union's president, said in a prepared statement that the proposal "is beyond comprehension."
She added that "it would do nothing but make the aircraft cabin less secure by reintroducing potential weapons into the environment."
Just this month, she said, two men were arrested in separate incidents for concealing razor blades while trying to go through airport screening in Kansas City, Mo., and Fort Lauderdale, Fla. One man carried the blade under his tongue while another had one in the bottom of his shoes, she said.
The proposal, which has not been finalized, would allow knives under 5 inches in length, bows and arrows and ice picks on airplanes. It would also lift the requirement for passengers to remove their shoes during screenings -- a practice that was adopted after Richard Reid attempted to ignite a bomb in his shoe on an American flight from Paris to Miami in 2001.
The Association of Professional Flight Attendants represents only American's attendants and has about 23,000 members. The proposal has been strongly opposed by other airline unions as well, including the Association of Flight Attendants.
Copyright 2005 Associated Press
