Crash axe
 

There is a lethal weapon carried on every flight deck - namely the crash axe.
It makes Swiss army knives seem rather benign.
Is there any evidence that the presence of this piece of equipment on the flight deck has increased flight safety?
If not I suggest this dangerous weapon be removed from all flight decks today.

Perhaps a slight expansion on your question.

I am reminded of the saying that if all you have for a tool is a hammer, then everything looks like a nail. Perhaps some would care to comment on uses that the crash axe has (past tense) served in the past.

I have never flown on an Australian aircraft with a crash axe on board. They were all removed some years ago for the very reasons you appear concerned about.

The baton was removed some five years ago for the same reason - they had never been used in anger apparently.

Now that i,m not to be trusted with a leatherman tool or a screwdriver the fire axe is the last resort if i need to open a can of mobil jet oil 2.

Could well be apocryphal, but the crash axe supposedly became useful in allowing an enthusiastic do-it-yourself flight deck crew to extricate themselves from a self-generated problem. 'Twould appear that these chaps decided to remove the Wx radar from the centre console to effect some in-flight repairs but said radar box got jammed halfway out. No amount of fiddling would move it one way or the other and it's position made throttle movement impossible. Soooooo.... last resort - the fire axe and reduce said Wx radar to a kit of parts !!!!
Nah... tell me it can't be true?? ;) ;)

I am told that the guys were trying to recover a dropped pen by removing the WX radar on a 737-200 in flight the rest of the story you know.

Is it required, by law, on board? I'm trying to find out. So far no info!
We have 2, one just introduced in the Aft cabin area - seriously reviewing that one.
Maybe move the flight deck piece to beside the F/o, and train him how to use it like a 'dart' ;)

Does anyone recall an Egypt Air 737 hijacked to Malta some years ago?
On the ground at Malta the hijacker was killed by the captain useing the crash axe?
The Egypt national captain was then to be prosecuted for useing unnecessary force?
However I recall this charge was dropped.

Well, perhaps we should have 'Crash' handguns - you know, for shooting out windows etc to allow us to escape the wreckage after an incident...

CPB

Having had my disposable razors consfiscated at security, the security guards didn't seem too worried when I told them about the axe that sits next to my seat. Neither were they concerned about the glass litre bottles of Famous Grouse that the pax had bought from duty Free. Seems that they go by the book, no matter how flawed the book happens to be.

Crash axes and crow bars are required under JAR-OPS Part 1:

"1.795 - Crash Axes and Crowbars

(a) An operator shall not operate an aeroplane with a maximum certificated take-off mass exceeding 5700 kg or having a maximum approved passenger seating configuration of more than 9 seats unless it is equipped with at least one crash axe or crowbar located on the flight deck. If the maximum approved passenger seating configuration is more than 200 an additional crash axe or crowbar must be carried and located in or near the most rearward galley area.

(b) Crash axes and crowbars located in the passenger compartment must not be visible to passengers."

I suspect that this is an ICAO requirement but I don't have a copy of the Annex 6 with me.

I have always supposed the crash axe to be a hangover from earlier days of unpressurised aircraft (ie thin skins and frangible windows) where such a device might be used to effect rapid disembarkation ....

... then again .. Ansett did despatch a horse as I recall in the Electra days ... which led to our carrying a .38

If only a Saudia L1011 crewmember had remembered to use it to puncture the fuselage to effect depressurization, then someone may have been able to open a door, or open the cockpit ceiling hatch. SV163 @ RUH 19-08-80.

Some guys want to keep it on board to brake away interior sections in case of fire or possibility thereof. (to get a fire extinguisher to it).
e.g. burning smell and heat between aft-toilet and aft-galley.

Any crash axe I've ever seen had about the heft of a tack hammer. Hit a terrorist with one of those things, and you'd only pi$$ him off. Now a fire axe...