I 

108TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 165

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 

MAY 9, 2003

Referred to the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure 

AN ACT

To improve air cargo security.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Air Cargo Security 

5 Improvement Act’’.

2

S 165 RFH 

1 SEC. 2. INSPECTION OF CARGO CARRIED ABOARD PAS2 SENGER AIRCRAFT. 

3 Section 44901(f) of title 49, United States Code, is 

4 amended to read as follows: 

5 ‘‘(f) CARGO.—

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary of 

7 Transportation for Security shall establish systems 

8 to screen, inspect, or otherwise ensure the security 

9 of all cargo that is to be transported in—

10 ‘‘(A) passenger aircraft operated by an air 

11 carrier or foreign air carrier in air transpor12 tation or intrastate air transportation; or 

13 ‘‘(B) all-cargo aircraft in air transpor14 tation and intrastate air transportation. 

15 ‘‘(2) STRATEGIC PLAN.—The Under Secretary 

16 shall develop a strategic plan to carry out paragraph 

17 (1) within 6 months after the date of enactment of 

18 the Air Cargo Security Improvement Act. 

19 ‘‘(3) PILOT PROGRAM.—The Under Secretary 

20 shall conduct a pilot program of screening of cargo 

21 to assess the effectiveness of different screening 

22 measures, including the use of random screening. 

23 The Under Secretary shall attempt to achieve a dis24 tribution of airport participation in terms of geo25 graphic location and size.’’. 

3

S 165 RFH 

1 SEC. 3. AIR CARGO SHIPPING. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 449 of 

3 title 49, United States Code, is amended by adding at the 

4 end the following: 

5 ‘‘§ 44922. Regular inspections of air cargo shipping 

6 facilities 

7 ‘‘The Under Secretary of Transportation for Security 

8 shall establish a system for the regular inspection of ship9 ping facilities for shipments of cargo transported in air 

10 transportation or intrastate air transportation to ensure 

11 that appropriate security controls, systems, and protocols 

12 are observed, and shall enter into arrangements with the 

13 civil aviation authorities, or other appropriate officials, of 

14 foreign countries to ensure that inspections are conducted 

15 on a regular basis at shipping facilities for cargo trans16 ported in air transportation to the United States.’’. 

17 (b) ADDITIONAL INSPECTORS.—The Under Secretary 

18 may increase the number of inspectors as necessary to im19 plement the requirements of title 49, United States Code, 

20 as amended by this subtitle. 

21 (c) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter anal22 ysis for chapter 449 of title 49, United States Code, is 

23 amended by adding at the end the following:

‘‘44922. Regular inspections of air cargo shipping facilities’’.

4

S 165 RFH 

1 SEC. 4. CARGO CARRIED ABOARD PASSENGER AIRCRAFT. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Subchapter I of chapter 449 of 

3 title 49, United States Code, is further amended by adding 

4 at the end the following: 

5 ‘‘§ 44923. Air cargo security 

6 ‘‘(a) DATABASE.—The Under Secretary of Transpor7 tation for Security shall establish an industry-wide pilot 

8 program database of known shippers of cargo that is to 

9 be transported in passenger aircraft operated by an air 

10 carrier or foreign air carrier in air transportation or intra11 state air transportation. The Under Secretary shall use 

12 the results of the pilot program to improve the known 

13 shipper program. 

14 ‘‘(b) INDIRECT AIR CARRIERS.— 

15 ‘‘(1) RANDOM INSPECTIONS.—The Under Sec16 retary shall conduct random audits, investigations, 

17 and inspections of indirect air carrier facilities to de18 termine if the indirect air carriers are meeting the 

19 security requirements of this title. 

20 ‘‘(2) ENSURING COMPLIANCE.—The Under Sec21 retary may take such actions as may be appropriate 

22 to promote and ensure compliance with the security 

23 standards established under this title. 

24 ‘‘(3) NOTICE OF FAILURES.—The Under Sec25 retary shall notify the Secretary of Transportation 

5

S 165 RFH 

1 of any indirect air carrier that fails to meet security 

2 standards established under this title. 

3 ‘‘(4) WITHDRAWAL OF SECURITY PROGRAM AP4 PROVAL.—The Under Secretary may issue an order 

5 amending, modifying, suspending, or revoking ap6 proval of a security program of an indirect air car7 rier that fails to meet security requirements imposed 

8 by the Under Secretary if such failure threatens the 

9 security of air transportation or commerce. The af10 fected indirect air carrier shall be given notice and 

11 the opportunity to correct its noncompliance unless 

12 the Under Secretary determines that an emergency 

13 exists. Any indirect air carrier that has the approval 

14 of its security program amended, modified, sus15 pended, or revoked under this section may appeal 

16 the action in accordance with procedures established 

17 by the Under Secretary under this title. 

18 ‘‘(5) INDIRECT AIR CARRIER.—In this sub19 section, the term ‘indirect air carrier’ has the mean20 ing given that term in part 1548 of title 49, Code 

21 of Federal Regulations. 

22 ‘‘(c) CONSIDERATION OF COMMUNITY NEEDS.—In 

23 implementing air cargo security requirements under this 

24 title, the Under Secretary may take into consideration the 

25 extraordinary air transportation needs of small or isolated 

6

S 165 RFH 

1 communities and unique operational characteristics of car2 riers that serve those communities.’’. 

3 (b) ASSESSMENT OF INDIRECT AIR CARRIER PRO4 GRAM.—The Under Secretary of Transportation for Secu5 rity shall assess the security aspects of the indirect air 

6 carrier program under part 1548 of title 49, Code of Fed7 eral Regulations, and report the result of the assessment, 

8 together with any recommendations for necessary modi9 fications of the program to the Senate Committee on Com10 merce, Science, and Transportation and the House of Rep11 resentatives Committee on Transportation and Infrastruc12 ture within 60 days after the date of enactment of this 

13 Act. The Under Secretary may submit the report and rec14 ommendations in classified form. 

15 (c) REPORT TO CONGRESS ON RANDOM AUDITS.—

16 The Under Secretary of Transportation for Security shall 

17 report to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, 

18 and Transportation and the House of Representatives 

19 Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure on ran20 dom screening, audits, and investigations of air cargo se21 curity programs based on threat assessments and other 

22 relevant information. The report may be submitted in clas23 sified form. 

24 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENT.—The chapter anal25 ysis for chapter 449 of title 49, United States Code, as 

7

S 165 RFH 

1 amended by section 3, is amended by adding at the end 

2 the following:

‘‘44923. Air cargo security’’.

3 SEC. 5. TRAINING PROGRAM FOR CARGO HANDLERS. 

4 The Under Secretary of Transportation for Security 

5 shall establish a training program for any persons that 

6 handle air cargo to ensure that the cargo is properly han7 dled and safe-guarded from security breaches. 

8 SEC. 6. CARGO CARRIED ABOARD ALL-CARGO AIRCRAFT. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary of Trans10 portation for Security shall establish a program requiring 

11 that air carriers operating all-cargo aircraft have an ap12 proved plan for the security of their air operations area, 

13 the cargo placed aboard such aircraft, and persons having 

14 access to their aircraft on the ground or in flight. 

15 (b) PLAN REQUIREMENTS.—The plan shall include 

16 provisions for—

17 (1) security of each carrier’s air operations 

18 areas and cargo acceptance areas at the airports 

19 served; 

20 (2) background security checks for all employ21 ees with access to the air operations area; 

22 (3) appropriate training for all employees and 

23 contractors with security responsibilities; 

24 (4) appropriate screening of all flight crews and 

25 persons transported aboard all-cargo aircraft; 

8

S 165 RFH 

1 (5) security procedures for cargo placed on all2 cargo aircraft as provided in section 44901(f)(1)(B) 

3 of title 49, United States Code; and 

4 (6) additional measures deemed necessary and 

5 appropriate by the Under Secretary. 

6 (c) CONFIDENTIAL INDUSTRY REVIEW AND COM7 MENT.—

8 (1) CIRCULATION OF PROPOSED PROGRAM.—

9 The Under Secretary shall—

10 (A) propose a program under subsection 

11 (a) within 90 days after the date of enactment 

12 of this Act; and 

13 (B) distribute the proposed program, on a 

14 confidential basis, to those air carriers and 

15 other employers to which the program will 

16 apply. 

17 (2) COMMENT PERIOD.—Any person to which 

18 the proposed program is distributed under para19 graph (1) may provide comments on the proposed 

20 program to the Under Secretary not more than 60 

21 days after it was received. 

22 (3) FINAL PROGRAM.—The Under Secretary of 

23 Transportation shall issue a final program under 

24 subsection (a) not later than 90 days after the last 

25 date on which comments may be provided under 

9

S 165 RFH 

1 paragraph (2). The final program shall contain time 

2 frames for the plans to be implemented by each air 

3 carrier or employer to which it applies. 

4 (4) SUSPENSION OF PROCEDURAL NORMS.—

5 Neither chapter 5 of title 5, United States Code, nor 

6 the Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. 

7 App.) shall apply to the program required by this 

8 section. 

9 SEC. 7. REPORT ON PASSENGER PRESCREENING PRO10 GRAM. 

11 (a) IN GENERAL.—Within 90 days after the date of 

12 enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Secu13 rity, after consultation with the Attorney General, shall 

14 submit a report in writing to the Senate Committee on 

15 Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House of 

16 Representatives Committee on Transportation and Infra17 structure on the potential impact of the Transportation 

18 Security Administration’s proposed Computer Assisted 

19 Passenger Prescreening system, commonly known as 

20 CAPPS II, on the privacy and civil liberties of United 

21 States citizens. 

22 (b) SPECIFIC ISSUES TO BE ADDRESSED.—The re23 port shall address the following: 

24 (1) Whether and for what period of time data 

25 gathered on individual travelers will be retained, who 

10

S 165 RFH 

1 will have access to such data, and who will make de2 cisions concerning access to such data. 

3 (2) How the Transportation Security Adminis4 tration will treat the scores assigned to individual 

5 travelers to measure the likelihood they may pose a 

6 security threat, including how long such scores will 

7 be retained and whether and under what cir8 cumstances they may be shared with other govern9 mental, non-governmental, or commercial entities. 

10 (3) The role airlines and outside vendors or 

11 contractors will have in implementing and operating 

12 the system, and to what extent will they have access, 

13 or the means to obtain access, to data, scores, or 

14 other information generated by the system. 

15 (4) The safeguards that will be implemented to 

16 ensure that data, scores, or other information gen17 erated by the system will be used only as officially 

18 intended. 

19 (5) The procedures that will be implemented to 

20 mitigate the effect of any errors, and what proce21 dural recourse will be available to passengers who 

22 believe the system has wrongly barred them from 

23 taking flights. 

24 (6) The oversight procedures that will be imple25 mented to ensure that, on an ongoing basis, privacy 

11

S 165 RFH 

1 and civil liberties issues will continue to be consid2 ered and addressed with high priority as the system 

3 is installed, operated and updated. 

4 SEC. 8. MODIFICATION OF REQUIREMENTS REGARDING 

5 TRAINING TO OPERATE AIRCRAFT. 

6 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 44939 of title 49, United 

7 States Code, is amended to read as follows: 

8 ‘‘§ 44939. Training to operate certain aircraft 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—

10 ‘‘(1) WAITING PERIOD.—A person subject to 

11 regulation under this part may provide training in 

12 the United States in the operation of an aircraft to 

13 an individual who is an alien (as defined in section 

14 101(a)(3) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 

15 U.S.C. 1101(a)(3))) or to any other individual speci16 fied by the Under Secretary of Homeland Security 

17 for Border and Transportation Security only if—

18 ‘‘(A) that person has notified the Under 

19 Secretary that the individual has requested 

20 such training and furnished the Under Sec21 retary with that individual’s identification in 

22 such form as the Under Secretary may require; 

23 and 

24 ‘‘(B) the Under Secretary has not directed, 

25 within 30 days after being notified under subVerDate Jan 31 2003 00:20 May 13, 2003 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S165.RFH S165
12

S 165 RFH 

1 paragraph (A), that person not to provide the 

2 requested training because the Under Secretary 

3 has determined that the individual presents a 

4 risk to aviation security or national security. 

5 ‘‘(2) NOTIFICATION-ONLY INDIVIDUALS.— 

6 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The requirements of 

7 paragraph (1) shall not apply to an an alien in8 dividual who holds a visa issued under title I of 

9 the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 

10 1101 et seq.) and who—

11 ‘‘(i) has earned a Federal Aviation 

12 Administration type rating in an aircraft 

13 or has undergone type-specific training, or 

14 ‘‘(ii) holds a current pilot’s license or 

15 foreign equivalent commercial pilot’s li16 cense that permits the person to fly an air17 craft with a maximum certificated takeoff 

18 weight of more than 12,500 pounds as de19 fined by the International Civil Aviation 

20 Organization in Annex 1 to the Convention 

21 on International Civil Aviation, 

22 if the person providing the training has notified 

23 the Under Secretary that the individual has re24 quested such training and furnished the Under 

13

S 165 RFH 

1 Secretary with that individual’s visa informa2 tion. 

3 ‘‘(B) EXCEPTION.—Subparagraph (A) 

4 does not apply to an alien individual whose air5 man’s certificate has been suspended or revoked 

6 under procedures established by the Under Sec7 retary. 

8 ‘‘(3) EXPEDITED PROCESSING.—The waiting 

9 period under paragraph (1) shall be expedited for an 

10 individual who—

11 ‘‘(A) has previously undergone a back12 ground records check by the Foreign Terrorist 

13 Tracking Task Force; 

14 ‘‘(B) is employed by a foreign air carrier 

15 certified under part 129 of title 49, Code of 

16 Federal Regulations, that has a TSA 1546 ap17 proved security program and who is undergoing 

18 recurrent flight training; 

19 ‘‘(C) is a foreign military pilot endorsed by 

20 the United States Department of Defense for 

21 flight training; or 

22 ‘‘(D) who has unescorted access to a se23 cured area of an airport designated under sec24 tion 44936(a)(1)(A)(ii). 

14

S 165 RFH 

1 ‘‘(4) INVESTIGATION AUTHORITY.—In order to 

2 determine whether an individual requesting training 

3 described in paragraph (1) presents a risk to avia4 tion security or national security the Under Sec5 retary is authorized to use the employment inves6 tigation authority provided by section 

7 44936(a)(1)(A) for individuals applying for a posi8 tion in which the individual has unescorted access to 

9 a secured area of an airport designated under sec10 tion 44936(a)(1)(A)(ii). 

11 ‘‘(5) FEE.— 

12 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—The Under Secretary 

13 may assess a fee for an investigation under this 

14 section, which may not exceed $100 per indi15 vidual (exclusive of the cost of transmitting fin16 gerprints collected at overseas facilities) during 

17 fiscal years 2003 and 2004. For fiscal year 

18 2005 and thereafter, the Under Secretary may 

19 adjust the maximum amount of the fee to re20 flect the costs of such an investigation. 

21 ‘‘(B) OFFSET.—Notwithstanding section 

22 3302 of title 31, United States Code, any fee 

23 collected under this section—

24 ‘‘(i) shall be credited to the account in 

25 the Treasury from which the expenses were 

15

S 165 RFH 

1 incurred and shall be available to the 

2 Under Secretary for those expenses; and 

3 ‘‘(ii) shall remain available until ex4 pended. 

5 ‘‘(b) INTERRUPTION OF TRAINING.—If the Under 

6 Secretary, more than 30 days after receiving notification 

7 under subsection (a)(1)(A) from a person providing train8 ing described in subsection (a)(1) or at anytime after re9 ceiving notice from such a person under subsection 

10 (a)(2)(a), determines that an individual receiving such 

11 training presents a risk to aviation or national security, 

12 the Under Secretary shall immediately notify the person 

13 providing the training of the determination and that per14 son shall immediately terminate the training. 

15 ‘‘(c) COVERED TRAINING.—For purposes of sub16 section (a), the term –‘training’—

17 ‘‘(1) includes in-flight training, training in a 

18 simulator, and any other form or aspect of training; 

19 but 

20 ‘‘(2) does not include classroom instruction 

21 (also known as ground school training), which may 

22 be provided during the 30-day period described in 

23 subsection (a)(1)(B). 

24 ‘‘(d) INTERAGENCY COOPERATION.—The Attorney 

25 General, the Director of Central Intelligence, and the AdVerDate Jan 31 2003 00:20 May 13, 2003 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00015 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S165.RFH S165
16

S 165 RFH 

1 ministrator of the Federal Aviation Administration shall 

2 cooperate with the Under Secretary in implementing this 

3 section. 

4 ‘‘(e) SECURITY AWARENESS TRAINING FOR EMPLOY5 EES.—The Under Secretary shall require flight schools to 

6 conduct a security awareness program for flight school 

7 employees, and for certified instructors who provide in8 struction for the flight school but who are not employees 

9 thereof, to increase their awareness of suspicious cir10 cumstances and activities of individuals enrolling in or at11 tending flight school.’’. 

12 (b) PROCEDURES.—

13 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 60 days after 

14 the date of enactment of this Act, the Under Sec15 retary of Homeland Security for Border and Trans16 portation Security shall promulgate an interim final 

17 rule to implement section 44939 of title 49, United 

18 States Code, as amended by subsection (a). 

19 (2) USE OF OVERSEAS FACILITIES.—In order to 

20 implement section 44939 of title 49, United States 

21 Code, as amended by subsection (a), United States 

22 Embassies and Consulates that possess appropriate 

23 fingerprint collection equipment and personnel cer24 tified to capture fingerprints shall provide finger25 print services to aliens covered by that section if the 

17

S 165 RFH 

1 Under Secretary requires fingerprints in the admin2 istration of that section, and shall transmit the fin3 gerprints to the Under Secretary or other agency 

4 designated by the Under Secretary. The Attorney 

5 General and the Secretary of State shall cooperate 

6 with the Under Secretary in carrying out this para7 graph. 

8 (3) USE OF UNITED STATES FACILITIES.—If 

9 the Under Secretary requires fingerprinting in the 

10 administration of section 44939 of title 49, United 

11 States Code, the Under Secretary may designate lo12 cations within the United States that will provide 

13 fingerprinting services to individuals covered by that 

14 section. 

15 (c) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made by 

16 subsection (a) takes effect on the effective date of the in17 terim final rule required by subsection (b)(1). 

18 (d) REPORT.—Not later than 1 year after the date 

19 of enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Homeland Secu20 rity shall submit to the Senate Committee on Commerce, 

21 Science, and Transportation and the House of Represent22 atives Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure a 

23 report on the effectiveness of the activities carried out 

24 under section 44939 of title 49, United States Code, in 

25 reducing risks to aviation security and national security. 

18

S 165 RFH 

1 SEC. 9. PASSENGER IDENTIFICATION. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 180 days after the 

3 date of enactment of this Act, the Under Secretary of 

4 Transportation for Security, in consultation with the Ad5 ministrator of the Federal Aviation Administration, appro6 priate law enforcement, security, and terrorism experts, 

7 representatives of air carriers and labor organizations rep8 resenting individuals employed in commercial aviation, 

9 shall develop guidelines to provide air carriers guidance 

10 for detecting false or fraudulent passenger identification. 

11 The guidelines may take into account new technology, cur12 rent identification measures, training of personnel, and 

13 issues related to the types of identification available to the 

14 public. The Federal Advisory Committee Act (5 U.S.C. 

15 App.) shall not apply to any meeting held pursuant to this 

16 subsection. 

17 (b) AIR CARRIER PROGRAMS.—Within 60 days after 

18 the Under Secretary issues the guidelines under sub19 section (a) in final form, the Under Secretary shall provide 

20 the guidelines to each air carrier and establish a joint gov21 ernment and industry council to develop recommendations 

22 on how to implement the guidelines. 

23 (c) REPORT.—The Under Secretary of Transpor24 tation for Security shall report to the Senate Committee 

25 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House 

26 of Representatives Committee on Transportation and InVerDate Jan 31 2003 00:20 May 13, 2003 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00018 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S165.RFH S165
19

S 165 RFH 

1 frastructure within 1 year after the date of enactment of 

2 this Act on the actions taken under this section. 

3 SEC. 10. PASSENGER IDENTIFICATION VERIFICATION. 

4 (a) PROGRAM REQUIRED.—The Under Secretary of 

5 Transportation for Security may establish and carry out 

6 a program to require the installation and use at airports 

7 in the United States of the identification verification tech8 nologies the Under Secretary considers appropriate to as9 sist in the screening of passengers boarding aircraft at 

10 such airports. 

11 (b) TECHNOLOGIES EMPLOYED.—The identification 

12 verification technologies required as part of the program 

13 under subsection (a) may include identification scanners, 

14 biometrics, retinal, iris, or facial scanners, or any other 

15 technologies that the Under Secretary considers appro16 priate for purposes of the program. 

17 (c) COMMENCEMENT.—If the Under Secretary deter18 mines that the implementation of such a program is ap19 propriate, the installation and use of identification 

20 verification technologies under the program shall com21 mence as soon as practicable after the date of that deter22 mination. 

20

S 165 RFH 

1 SEC. 11. BLAST-RESISTANT CARGO CONTAINER TECH2 NOLOGY. 

3 Not later than 6 months after the date of enactment 

4 of this Act, the Under Secretary of Transportation for Se5 curity, and the Administrator of the Federal Aviation Ad6 ministration, shall jointly submit a report to Congress that 

7 contains—

8 (1) an evaluation of blast-resistant cargo con9 tainer technology to protect against explosives in 

10 passenger luggage and cargo; 

11 (2) an examination of the advantages associated 

12 with the technology in preventing damage and loss 

13 of aircraft from terrorist action and any operational 

14 impacts which may result from use of the technology 

15 (particularly added weight and costs); 

16 (3) an analysis of whether alternatives exist to 

17 mitigate the impacts described in paragraph (2) and 

18 options available to pay for the technology; and 

19 (4) recommendations on what further action, if 

20 any, should be taken with respect to the use of blast21 resistant cargo containers on passenger aircraft. 

22 SEC. 12. ARMING PILOTS AGAINST TERRORISM. 

23 (a) FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.—

24 (1) FINDINGS.—Congress makes the following 

25 findings: 

21

S 165 RFH 

1 (A) During the 107th Congress, both the 

2 Senate and the House of Representatives over3 whelmingly passed measures that would have 

4 armed pilots of cargo aircraft. 

5 (B) Cargo aircraft do not have Federal air 

6 marshals, trained cabin crew, or determined 

7 passengers to subdue terrorists. 

8 (C) Cockpit doors on cargo aircraft, if 

9 present at all, largely do not meet the security 

10 standards required for commercial passenger 

11 aircraft. 

12 (D) Cargo aircraft vary in size and many 

13 are larger and carry larger amounts of fuel 

14 than the aircraft hijacked on September 11, 

15 2001. 

16 (E) Aircraft cargo frequently contains haz17 ardous material and can contain deadly biologi18 cal and chemical agents and quantities of 

19 agents that caused communicable diseases. 

20 (F) Approximately 12,000 of the Nation’s 

21 90,000 commercial pilots serve as pilots and 

22 flight engineers on cargo aircraft. 

23 (G) There are approximately 2,000 cargo 

24 flights per day in the United States, many of 

25 which are loaded with fuel for outbound interVerDate Jan 31 2003 00:20 May 13, 2003 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00021 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S165.RFH S165
22

S 165 RFH 

1 national travel or are inbound from foreign air2 ports not secured by the Transportation Secu3 rity Administration. 

4 (H) aircraft transporting cargo pose a seri5 ous risk as potential terrorist targets that could 

6 be used as weapons of mass destruction. 

7 (I) Pilots of cargo aircraft deserve the 

8 same ability to protect themselves and the air9 craft they pilot as other commercial airline pi10 lots. 

11 (J) Permitting pilots of cargo aircraft to 

12 carry firearms creates an important last line of 

13 defense against a terrorist effort to com14 mandeer a cargo aircraft. 

15 (2) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of 

16 Congress that a member of a flight deck crew of a 

17 cargo aircraft should be armed with a firearm to de18 fend the cargo aircraft against an attack by terror19 ists that could result in the use of the aircraft as a 

20 weapon of mass destruction or for other terrorists 

21 purposes. 

22 (b) ARMING CARGO PILOTS AGAINST TERRORISM.—

23 Section 44921 of title 49, United States Code, is amend24 ed—

23

S 165 RFH 

1 (1) by striking ‘‘passenger’’ in subsection (a) 

2 each place that it appears; 

3 (2) by striking ‘‘or,’’ and all that follows in sub4 section (k)(2) and inserting ‘‘or any other flight 

5 deck crew member.’’; and 

6 (3) by adding at the end of subsection (k) the 

7 following: 

8 ‘‘(3) ALL-CARGO AIR TRANSPORTATION.—For 

9 the purposes of this section, the term air transpor10 tation includes all-cargo air transportation.’’. 

11 (c) IMPLEMENTATION.—

12 (1) TIME FOR IMPLEMENTATION.—The training 

13 of pilots as Federal flight deck officers required in 

14 the amendments made by subsection (b) shall begin 

15 as soon as practicable and no later than 90 days 

16 after the date of enactment of this Act. 

17 (2) EFFECT ON OTHER LAWS.—The require18 ments of subparagraph (1) shall have no effect on 

19 the deadlines for implementation contained in sec20 tion 44921 of title 49, United States Code, as in ef21 fect on the day before the date of enactment of this 

22 Act. 

24

S 165 RFH 

1 SEC. 13. REPORT ON DEFENDING AIRCRAFT FROM MAN2 PORTABLE AIR DEFENSE SYSTEMS (SHOUL3 DER-FIRED MISSILES). 

4 (a) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 90 days after the 

5 date of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Home6 land Security shall issue a report to the Senate Committee 

7 on Commerce, Science, and Transportation and the House 

8 of Representatives Committee on Transportation and In9 frastructure on how best to defend turbo and jet passenger 

10 aircraft from Man-Portable Air Defense Systems (shoul11 der-fired missiles). 

12 (b) ISSUES TO BE ADDRESSED.—The report shall in13 clude an analysis of—

14 (1) actions taken to date, countermeasures, risk 

15 mitigation, and other activities; 

16 (2) existing military countermeasure systems 

17 and how those systems might be adapted to commer18 cial aircraft applications; 

19 (3) means of reducing the costs of military 

20 countermeasure systems by modifying them for use 

21 on commercial aircraft; and 

22 (4) the extent of the threat and the need for 

23 countermeasures. 

24 (c) REPORT FORMAT.—The report may be submitted 

25 in classified form. 

25

S 165 RFH 

1 SEC. 14. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

2 There are authorized to be appropriated to the Sec3 retary of Homeland Security such sums as may be nec4 essary to carry out this Act and sections 44901(f), 44922, 

5 and 44923 of title 49, United States Code, for fiscal years 

6 2004 through 2008.

Passed the Senate May 8, 2003. 

Attest: EMILY J. REYNOLDS, 

Secretary.