Roadtrip
I would not dream of telling you how to fly an aeroplane, but that's not what we're talking about. This is about dealing with terrorists, and my qualifications are no better and no worse than yours in this respect. It might have escaped your attention, but holding a pilot's license does not make you an expert on security, terrorism or firearms.
Whether you like it or not, the decision will not be taken by pilots or by engineers, but by politicians and lawmakers who have just as little right in your eyes as I to make a judgement on the issue.
You might do better to refine your arguments so that you convince them, rather than hiding behind the elitism of your profession and asserting that no one else is qualified to hold an opinion.
Capt Pit Bull
I defer to your sensible wish not to discuss the efficacy of locked/reinforced cockpit doors on this forum. A lot depends on this point however, and I hope it is being considered in conjunction with the question we have been discussing.
I was going to phone you and say my last words on this matter, but it's getting a bit late now so I'll write them here. I think there are good arguments on both sides of this debate. A lot depends on the risks of arming pilots compared to the actual benefit to security.
It may be that, in the final analysis, the benfits outweigh the risks, but in my mind, the jury is very much still out on the issue, and I have yet to be completely convinced otherwise.