US FAA seeks security upgrades for new planes

WASHINGTON, Jan 6 (Reuters) The US government, noting continued security risks and threats, proposed upgrades for new passenger jets to further secure the cockpit from potential hijackers and reduce the danger posed by bombs.

The Federal Aviation Administration wants manufacturers, including Boeing Co. and Airbus, to design aircraft with stronger floors, bulkheads and ceilings around flight deck doors to better protect the crew.

The agency also called for improved smoke and fire suppression systems and other changes that would make it more difficult to hide explosives or weapons in the cabin. The agency also wants airliners to have a reinforced compartment where a bomb could be placed should one be discovered during flight.

''This proposal would decrease aircraft vulnerability and increase aircraft survivability in the event of a bombing or hijacking,'' agency officials said yesterday in their proposal that would cost manufacturers and airlines more than 450 million dollar over dozens of years.

A Boeing spokesman, Jim Proulx, said the company would work with the FAA on the proposal but said the plan had to be reviewed in detail before Boeing would comment further.

Airbus, the European consortium based in France, said in a statement it would continue to work with the aviation community ''to determine if any further (security) actions are appropriate.'' Congress required the airline industry to strengthen cockpit doors after the September. 11, 2001, hijackings. That job was completed in 2003, but aviation authorities noted additional gaps that should be addressed.

The proposal incorporates international safety changes adopted since the attacks as well as recommendations from special FAA safety committees and other reviews, officials said.

The FAA is not recommending the upgrade for the thousands of commercial planes now in service. The government opted against broader structural security changes when it required stronger cockpit doors, arguing that major retrofits would put planes out of service for long periods of time.

The FAA will accept public comments on its proposal through early April.

The proposal covers aircraft carrying 60 or more passengers, which rules out smaller regional jets -- which are being phased out -- and many of the propeller planes in the commercial fleet.

Some big US carriers have aging fleets and are expected to make decisions in the coming years on new aircraft.

REUTERS SRS PM0651