FEDERAL AIR MARSHALS

Federal Air Marshals

Federal Air Marshals

The Federal Air Marshal is a component of the Transportation Security Administration, which is housed within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Federal air marshals (FAMs) are a full-time force that continuously deploy throughout the world on all major U.S. carriers in areas where terrorist activities indicate the highest probability of attack. FAMs respond to criminal incidents aboard U.S. air carriers, as well as other in-flight emergencies. FAMs are authorized to carry firearms and make arrests, while preserving the safety of aircraft, crew, and passengers. As with many areas of aviation security, only limited information on the has been made available to the public. FAMs disguise themselves as ordinary travelers to maintain a low profile so that no one aboard a flight knows an air marshal is present except for the pilot and flight crew.

Aircraft piracy was initially addressed in the Federal Aviation Act of 1958, but it was defined more specifically by Public Law 87-197 of 1961. It was defined as “any seizure or exercise of control, by force or violence or threat of force or violence and with wrongful intent, of an aircraft in flight in air commerce.” Punishment for this crime was either the death penalty or imprisonment of not less than 20 years. Public Law 87-197 also outlined regulations governing “interference with flight crew members or flight attendants” and “carrying weapons aboard aircraft.” The law was enacted because there was a rash of air piracy incidents on commercial jets in the 1960s.

The Federal Air Marshal began as the Sky Marshal in 1968, organized under the U.S. Marshal Service, and was designed to stop hijackings to and from Cuba. The sky marshals introduced certain airport screening processes that are still in use today, including a special pat-down search. During the four years ...