International Flight Security

Have you seen the video of Malaysia Air Flight 370 pilot Zaharie Ahmad Shah going through the security screening prior to boarding the doomed jet? I have no idea whether the pilot was nefarious, heroic, or some hapless victim, but I do know making pilots endure magnetometers and pat downs for weapons is ridiculous on its face as the pilot is flying a huge weapon in the same way as a car driver is controlling what can be used as a destructive device that can easily be turned to suicide or murder. If you can not trust that the pilot did not bring a pistol on the airplane he is flying with some destructive intent, then you have a lot more to worry about than the gun. After all, a pilot (or copilot) could simply press the yoke down if other crew members did not resist (or were involved in a suicide pact) and crash a commercial jetliner. The aviation industry and government regulators must do all that is possible to make sure that those in control in cockpits are worthy of our trust. After all, they have our lives in their hands.