United says cockpit door codes may have been published online

By Ian Simpson

REUTERS

 

FILE PHOTO: A United Airlines aircraft taxis as another lands at San Francisco International Airport, San Francisco, California, U.S., February 7, 2015. REUTERS/Louis Nastro/File Photo

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Codes to gain access to United Airlines cockpits may have been made public, the carrier said on Monday, but it stopped short of confirming a report that a flight attendant inadvertently published the codes online in a potential threat to air security.

 

The airline still could keep its flight decks secure through other measures, Maddie King, a spokeswoman for United Continental Holdings Corp <UAL.N>, said in an email. She declined to specify the other safeguards because of security considerations.

 

"We are working to resolve this issue as soon as possible," she said.

 

Citing a pilot who was briefed on the matter, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday that United, the world's third-largest airline by revenue, had alerted pilots that access codes to unlock cockpit doors were mistakenly posted on a public website by a flight attendant.

 

Cockpit security emerged as a top priority for airlines in September 2001, when hijackers took control of United and American Airlines planes and crashed them into New York's World Trade Center and the Pentagon in Washington. A third airliner commandeered by jihadists crashed in a western Pennsylvania field.

 

The United unit of the Air Line Pilots Association said in a statement that the accidental leak of information showed the need for stronger protections for flight deck doors.

 

The union has long backed secondary barriers, which it said would cost $5,000 each, and called on Congress to mandate them.

 

"The installation of secondary barriers on all passenger aircraft is a simple and cost effective way to bolster the last line of flight deck defence," the union said.

 

(Editing by Frank McGurty and Bill Trott)

 

-- © Copyright Reuters 2017-05-16

Published the codes by accident...shrearight..

It seems strange that an FA has the codes?

I would dare to suggest a pi..ed off flight attendant posted the codes out of badness.

tomorrow's headline:

"United changes cockpit door codes, so there..."

3 hours ago, mtls2005 said:

It seems strange that an FA has the codes?

Why do you think that strange? How else can she serve the pilot his coffee and whiskey if she cannot enter the cockpit?

40 minutes ago, ResandePohm said:

Why do you think that strange? How else can she serve the pilot his coffee and whiskey if she cannot enter the cockpit?

By allowing him to enter her cockpit?

20 minutes ago, PETERTHEEATER said:

By allowing him to enter her cockpit?

Do they serve coffee there also?

I would opt for any mode of transportation to avoid United Airlines.

8 hours ago, mtls2005 said:

It seems strange that an FA has the codes?

Why?  On the off-chance that this might be a serious question, the answer is simple.  If an FA wants/needs access, the pilot or FO lets her in obviously.   'Don't see why an FA ever needs flight deck access exc by approval of the flt dk crew.  Therefore, 'don't see why they need the codes.

 

Knowing FAs have them just makes FAs add'l points of duress I would think...

Edited May 16, 20179 yr by hawker9000

4 hours ago, ResandePohm said:

Why do you think that strange? How else can she serve the pilot his coffee and whiskey if she cannot enter the cockpit?

Flight deck opens the door from inside.

 

I am a 2 million miler on UA.

a peephole comes to mind which they have.

 

Airline pilots are basically doing nothing except taking off and landing and talking to ATC about mundane things like switching frequencies or alternating flight plans, approaches, etc. They could basically sleep.

 

Change the codes, job done.

 

God forbid the co-pilot has to stand up and look what's going on outside the door.