The concerns I posted ( and got bagged about) regarding access to the E/E bay in Boeings was in part discredited by regulators,several airlines management based on the lack of easy ability to be able to penetrate the flooring (lino) which is generally intact- except in certain ME carriers 777s..... Well , now that issue has been conveniently discarded by the TSA....
I have been invited but am yet to meet with two Australian senators and representatives from the transport workers unions ( oz) here that have shown interest in my concerns...but it appears that US crew are already (rightly ) concerned as to their inflight welfare.....in Australia the right to a reasonably safe work environment with foreseeable risks mitigated/ treated or removed is in legislation. Why is/are aviation / workers exempt?
The " as low as reasonably practical (ALARP) safety system is being replaced by Affordable level of safety (or ALOS) in new SMS's .... So exactly how does this relate to what is going on below????
What exactly is the cost versus benefit here and for who??........ Read below
From the Australian 06/03/13
POCKET knives and sports equipment - banned on US flights since the September 11, 2001 terrorism attacks - will be allowed back in aircraft cabins, the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) says.
Passengers will be able to carry knives with folding blades 6cm or shorter, as well as sporting goods such as golf clubs, hockey clubs, and novelty-sized baseball bats, the federal agency said.
TSA chief John Pistole says the new guidelines, which come into effect on April 25, will bring US security regulations into line with international standards.
Among the sporting goods to be allowed as carry-on baggage will be billiard cues, ski poles, hockey sticks, lacrosse sticks and up to two golf clubs, Mr Pistole said.
Baseball bats measuring 60cm or shorter and weighing no more than 680gm will also be permitted.
Box cutters, razor blades and knives that don't fold or that have moulded grip handles will still be prohibited, the TSA said.
"This is part of an overall risk-based security approach, which allows Transportation Security Officers to better focus their efforts on finding higher threat items such as explosives," Mr Pistole said.
( my comment ... Who needs explosives- i just told you how knowledge and NOW a readily available knife will down a jet if that is your objective and not actual control of the flight deck)
The move drew an immediate outcry from unions representing flight attendants and other airline workers, who said the items are still dangerous in the hands of the wrong passengers.
Transport Workers Union Local 556, which represents over 10,000 flight attendants at Southwest Airlines, called the new policy "dangerous" and "short sighted," saying it was designed to make "the lives of TSA staff easier, but not make flights safer."
"While we agree that a passenger wielding a small knife or swinging a golf club or hockey stick poses less of a threat to the pilot locked in the cockpit, these are real threats to passengers and flight attendants in the passenger cabin," the union said in a statement.
There has been a gradual easing of some of the security measures applied to airline passengers after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks.
In 2005, the TSA changed its policies to allow passengers to carry on airplanes small scissors, knitting needles, tweezers, nail clippers and up to four books of matches.