Norwegian Pilot Quits, Citing “Security Madness”

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Picture the last time you flew commercial and stood in line to remove your shoes before reporting to the gate. Now imagine being an airline pilot in uniform, and going through those same lines up to 10 times a day. In Norway, some airline pilots are running out of patience with the system. One pilot delayed a departure when he refused to take off his shoes and reportedly shouted “I am no terrorist!” Another senior pilot chose to retire early, citing “security madness” as the reason. “He is happy to be retired and finished with this,” Tom Erik Liverud, head of Widere airline’s pilot union, told the newspaper Adresseavisen. “This is a marked contrast to some years ago when pilots were sad to give up their dream jobs when they passed 60.”

The security demands are all for show and in some situations are counterproductive, Liverud told the newspaper. “All a pilot needs to crash a plane is his hands. It feels meaningless to use so many millions of crowns without even carrying out a risk analysis,” he said. The Norwegian Airline Pilots Association has said flight crews should have the same privileges as customs officers and police, who are allowed to freely pass through airport security checks when on duty.

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