WASHINGTON, DC – Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01) released the following statement after the Department of Transportation and Federal Aviation Administration announcement on a final rule regarding secondary cockpit barriers on all newly manufactured commercial aircraft. At the urging of Members of Congress, this provision for a rule was included in the FAA Reauthorization Act of 2018 and was required to be issued by no later than October 2019. In July 2022, the FAA issued a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking and solicited public comment for the next 60 days. Yesterday’s final rule will require, within two years, that all passenger aircraft coming off production lines are equipped with life-saving secondary barriers.
“Since I first came to Congress, I have fought to make our skies and aircraft more secure for our pilots, flight crews, passengers, and their families. After five years of waiting, I am proud to see that the Department of Transportation has issued this final rule to require secondary cockpit barriers on covered passenger aircraft from the moment of manufacture,” said Congressman Fitzpatrick. “I am grateful for the continued partnership of my colleagues from both sides of the aisle on this issue, as well as the exceptional advocacy of my friend Ellen Saracini, whose husband Captain Victor Saracini perished on September 11th, 2001, when the flight he was piloting was hijacked and flown into the World Trade Center. While yesterday’s action is a step in the right direction, this fight is far from being over. As Congress works to formulate the reauthorization of the FAA this year, and until we ensure the safety of the flight deck from physical intrusion, I will not stop pushing for extending the requirement for secondary cockpit barriers to all passenger airplanes.”
Congressman Fitzpatrick, alongside a wide range of bipartisan colleagues, reintroduced H.R. 911, the Saracini Enhanced Aviation Safety Act in the 118th Congress on February 9th, 2023. This legislation would extend the requirement for secondary cockpit barriers to all commercial aircraft and ensure that Congress lives up to the national promise to “Never Again” allow the events of September 11th to recur. It remains a top priority for Congressman Fitzpatrick to include this provision in the 2023 FAA Reauthorization package.
Read the rule HERE.
Read the text of H.R. 911 HERE.
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