arming pilots
One pilot here in the US recently wrote a letter to a newspaper saying, despite ALPA's position, most of the pilots he surveyed, when asked, "Would you like to fly with some of the pilots you have worked with, knowing they have access to a gun in the cockpit?" the answer was almost invariably, "No!"
Judging by some of the posts here, it is easy to understand why.
I'm a working ALPA member, but disagree with their position.
There is no viable solution, either way. I know some pilots would like to go down fighting, instead of feeling helpless. Would that solve the problem? Probably not. Commanders chafing at loss of authority somehow seem to think they can solve the problem by shooting terrorists and save the day. Good luck!
Perhaps a pistol might comfort a pilot, but I seriously doubt guns in the cockpit in most cases would be enough to prevent hijacks by determined terrorists.
Calls for "viable alternatives" are hollow. There ain't none.
Aye, there's the rub.