Widow Of 9-11 Pilot In Chicago To Call For More Cockpit Security
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The widow of a United pilot who died on 9-11 is in Chicago today to ask United Airlines to mandate secondary barriers for airline cockpits.
The pilot of United Airlines Flight 175 was Victor Saracini. That was the plane that crashed into the South Tower of the World Trade Center.
His wife Ellen is in Chicago right now to meet with United Airlines executives - to push for a metal barrier on all commercial flights because she says that fortified cockpit door is often opened during flights.
"When I was flying, I looked outside and I was thinking of my husband. And I said to him, 'Listen, Vic, I need you here today. I need you to help me have a voice to make sure that what happened to you never happens again.'"
She says United has some secondary barriers - but is not inclined to put them on any more planes.
"The doors that United put on were between $5,000 and $6,000. You can compare that to what the airlines pay for an in-flight entertainment system of $1 million per airplane."
Saracini says she wants Congress to mandate secondary barriers.
Widow Of 9-11 Pilot In Chicago To Call For More Cockpit Security
United has released a statement that says, in part: "Security measures have evolved in the years since the secondary barriers were ordered, and many more layers of security now exist."
