Just recently the TSA has decided that they will once again allow pocket knives and small knives onboard. This is the first time that this will happen since the September 11 terrorist attacks. Federal air marshals and flight attendants have asked the TSA to reconsider their decision and are very outraged by the decision. It is believed that flight attendants will then become sitting ducks and that the TSA has not learned anything from the 9/11 terrorist attacks. The knives which will be allowed will not be able to have a blade longer that 2.36 inches or 4 centimeters. At the time of the 9/11 attacks there were knives allowed that were up to 4 inches long. There are other rules which state “the blade can be no more than 1/2 inch at its widest point, it cannot have a locking or fixed blade and cannot have a molded grip. Box cutters and razor blades are still not allowed inside the passenger cabin.” They have also decided that billard cues, ski poles, hockey sticks, lacrosse sticks, and golf clubs will be allowed as carry on items. These are items which all were prohibited in the bast. People think that because all of the advancements of security on the plane, that prohibiting such items is no longer necessary. It is now much harder to enter the cockpit. There are also air marshals on some flights and people are more educated about terrorism and what to look out for. The head of the air marshals says that he is “appalled” and that he has received about 100 calls from the other marshals who think that this decision is completely wrong. The new laws will put air marshals, federal law agents, flight attendants, pilots, and passengers at a much larger risk. There are unions of flight attendants who are also voicing their anger about the new laws.
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