Government Looking Into Filming Airplane Cabins

from the gotta-watch-everything-at-every-second dept

Tue, Oct 14th 2003 12:27am — Mike Masnick

Back in July there was some fuss around the story of a tiny charter airline, Southeast Airlines, that said they planned to install cameras in their passenger cabins to record everything that happens in-flight for security purposes. At the time, this seemed like a publicity stunt for a small airline (they had recently released other hyped up press releases that weren't completely accurate). However, it sounds like the FAA and the Transportation Security Administration likes just such an idea. They just had Boeing stop by to demonstrate a system that would put cameras in airplane cabins and broadcast the video down to the ground. Boeing says it's not them who is pushing the idea, but the government, who will decide whether or not to mandate such spy cameras in all planes. The privacy question will probably bother some people, but most seem to admit that airplanes are, for the most part, public places, and it's really no different than security cameras found all over the place (though, I'm sure people upset with those cameras will also be upset with these). More importantly, though, is one comment from someone who points out that this seems like a huge waste of money for something that is unlikely to actually increase security.

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Ed Halley, 14 Oct 2003 @ 9:27am

No Subject Given
The cockpit isn't a "public place." It's a workplace. There are probably a thousand things which pilots, navigators and stewards do, which when viewed without context or personal understanding, may seem unprofessional, and small infractions without any rational complaint can turn into career-enders because some outsider reviewed a tape. I think it's natural to see pushback on this concept.
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Mike (profile), 14 Oct 2003 @ 9:53am

Re: No Subject Given
They're not talking about the cockpit, but the passenger cabin....
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G, 1 Aug 2006 @ 8:24pm

and how is adding a security camera on planes going to help anything? if someone decides to pull out a knife and head to the cockpit while the plane is at 35,000 feet are the people on the ground going to be able to do anything? NO. i'm not so worried about someone watching me sleep on a flight, but i'm worried about how the government feels justified in adding cameras wherever they please. ever since 9/11 there's less privacy and america is slowly headed to an orwellian state.
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