CHP To Join The Friendly Skies

Armed California Highway Patrol officers will soon be flying aboard thousands of commercial flights inside the state. It´s believed to be the first time regular police officers will be used to protect passengers and crew while planes are actually flying. Under the new program, specially trained CHP officers will be allowed to carry guns on flights they take in the course of normal duties. That would include flying to conferences or on special assignments. Last year officers logged about 78-hundred on-duty hours aboard instate flights. That´s about 10 percent of the flights that begin and end inside California. Governor Davis says the plan provides another line of defense for airline security.