Guys,
No law enforcement agency or professional can live by the claim that "accidents happen". That is a dangerous state of mind. Proper training is required to avoid accidents. I personally think that the whole program should be a little more expanded to assure safety. Anybody that ACTUALLY knows how to handle guns, avoids accidents at any cost. So, blame it on the pilot and the training standards. Not on the gun or the airline.
I personally do not see FFDOs as heroes. They do it because they like it. For some, is the glamor of the training and the badge, for others just to avoid the ongoing, unhealthy x-ray examination. Nobody that I know does it because of the romantic reasons that ring with patriotism... (some are just cowboys looking for a chance to prove it!)
It is voluntary and not required. I like it a lot, and can't wait for my vacation to come so I can spend it in NM. But I know that I'll be taking a big responsibility and the risk of screwing up.
The airline has the right to fire this guy. I don't think we can question that. The union has the responsibility of defending the guy but not of believing in him. Weapons seldom go off by themselves and I don't think this was the case anyways...
He screwed up and became a huge safety hazard.
He is obviously not ready to have a gun and showed poor decision making which endangered passengers and possibly public on the ground. This is clearly grounds for dismissal. Raise the bar guys, don't lower it to accommodate mediocrity!
Just my 2 cents.
Ready for the firing squad.
