Row Over Shooting Down Planes Rekindles in Germany

[Conga]

Germany's interior minister wants to change the constitution to allow the military to shoot down planes if terrorists use them as weapons. The plan has been harshly criticized by others.

Less than a year after Germany's highest court declared a law allowing the destruction of terrorist-controlled planes as unconstitutional, German Interior Minister Wolfgang Schäuble now plans to amend the constitution to allow this.
In its Tuesday edition, the Süddeutsche Zeitung quoted Schäuble, a member of Germany's conservative Christian Democratic Union, as saying that the amendment would create a so-called "de facto defense situation," which would allow Germany's military to shoot down the plane.
On Feb. 15, 2006, the high court had rejected a new law that would have allowed planes to be shot down. Judges said that it was impossible to weigh the lives of people on the ground against the innocent passengers sitting in the plane.

Rejecting a "license to kill"

Politicians across the political spectrum have already rejected the idea.
"Schäuble is trying to side-step the constitutional court," Volker Beck of the opposition Greens party told Netzeitung, adding that German parliamentarians should not create a "license to kill."
According to Süddeutsche Zeitung, Max Stadler of the free-market, liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP), Germany's largest opposition party, also called on Schäuble to respect the court's decision, adding that rulings by constitutional judges had traditionally been accepted in Germany as binding.
Dieter Wiefelspütz, an interior policy expert for Schäuble's coalition partner, the Social Democratic Party, also called the interior minister's plan "not acceptable," Süddeutsche Zeitung reported.
He added that sacrificing the lives of innocent people could only be demanded if the nation as a whole is threatened.http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2296890,00.html

How about allowing sky marshalls to prevent hijackings in the first place instead of side-stepping the constitutional court :roll:

[digrar]

How about allowing sky marshalls to prevent hijackings in the first place instead of side-stepping the constitutional court :roll:

Someone just ran an article on the German sky marshals. Looks like a hot topic atm.

[Macs.]

Someone just ran an article on the German sky marshals. Looks like a hot topic atm.

German Sky Marshals Feeling Grounded:
http://www.militaryphotos.net/forums/showthread.php?t=101326

[2Sheds_Jackson]

It will take exactly one episode of attack by plane to get this issue cleared up. All the high-minded talk and hand wringing will be crushed under a mountain of litigation and finger pointing, and be replaced by a simple math equation.

[annihilation]

Its a sad situation to be put into and a tough one. But in the end, if the plane is highjacked and it has a chance as being used as a weapon then you have no choice but to shoot it down before it gets to a popullated area. The lives in the plane were lost the minute the highjackers took the plane over.

[toki]

Its a sad situation to be put into and a tough one. But in the end, if the plane is highjacked and it has a chance as being used as a weapon then you have no choice but to shoot it down before it gets to a popullated area. The lives in the plane were lost the minute the highjackers took the plane over.

Every area in Germany is populated. More or less, but we have no considerable empty spots on the map. I think the skymarshals should be there to avoid it, after it is in the air there will only be one decision, over which city do we shoot it down.
It sounds like i'm kidding, but the idea of shooting a plane down works much better in the US. Have a plane in a 200 mile radius here, from where i live and you'll hit a house/town/city anyway. Who wants to decide that?

[Hollis]

"license to kill" crap again, when will the liberals ever figure out, the right to self defense is inherent.

Often in life there are two choices, evil and really evil. Sadly someone has got to make that decision. All the wishing, hoping, wanting, and hallucinatory drugs one take will not alter the reality.

So liberal keep clicking your heels, it still won't get you back to Kansas. (hint: Wizard of Oz)

[2Sheds_Jackson]

Every area in Germany is populated. More or less, but we have no considerable empty spots on the map. I think the skymarshals should be there to avoid it, after it is in the air there will only be one decision, over which city do we shoot it down.
It sounds like i'm kidding, but the idea of shooting a plane down works much better in the US. Have a plane in a 200 mile radius here, from where i live and you'll hit a house/town/city anyway. Who wants to decide that?

That's why Raytheon has developed the new AIM-990e, an air-to-air missile specifically designed to be used against airliners. It's basically a cluster of 4 Mk84 2000lb bombs strapped together, with a rocket motor, infrared terminal homing only, and a proximity fuse. It's designed to completely obliterate the airliner, leaving bits no larger than a shot glass, which have been calculated to not cause detectable damage to fine German automobiles.







;-) Ok I feel bad for posting that. But it's too late to turn back now.

[joe mama]

That's why Raytheon has developed the new AIM-990e, an air-to-air missile specifically designed to be used against airliners. It's basically a cluster of 4 Mk84 2000lb bombs strapped together, with a rocket motor, infrared terminal homing only, and a proximity fuse. It's designed to completely obliterate the airliner, leaving bits no larger than a shot glass, which have been calculated to not cause detectable damage to fine German automobiles.

;-) Ok I feel bad for posting that. But it's too late to turn back now.

When will these be available for me to purchase? I need several. Immediately.

[2Sheds_Jackson]

When will these be available for me to purchase? I need several. Immediately.

Well it sure would keep the neighbors in line. If the music is too loud, just walk out and start pulling off all the "remove before flight" tags...

[annihilation]

That's why Raytheon has developed the new AIM-990e, an air-to-air missile specifically designed to be used against airliners. It's basically a cluster of 4 Mk84 2000lb bombs strapped together, with a rocket motor, infrared terminal homing only, and a proximity fuse. It's designed to completely obliterate the airliner, leaving bits no larger than a shot glass, which have been calculated to not cause detectable damage to fine German automobiles.







;-) Ok I feel bad for posting that. But it's too late to turn back now.

So wait, its 4, 2000 lb bombs? Wouldn't that make the missile something like 8,000 + missile?

[Hollis]

Well it sure would keep the neighbors in line. If the music is too loud, just walk out and start pulling off all the "remove before flight" tags...


Sir, you have a wicked mind, I need to get a few too. :)

[Hunterhr]

That's why Raytheon has developed the new AIM-990e, an air-to-air missile specifically designed to be used against airliners. It's basically a cluster of 4 Mk84 2000lb bombs strapped together, with a rocket motor, infrared terminal homing only, and a proximity fuse.


If I gotta go, I want to go out from one of those.

I love me some overkill.

[2Sheds_Jackson]

So wait, its 4, 2000 lb bombs? Wouldn't that make the missile something like 8,000 + missile?

http://media.militaryphotos.net/photos/albums/2shedsjackson/afg.sized.jpg

Shown here in a very expensive Raytheon artist's rendering that taxpayers paid for, the AIM-990e is shown in it's ready-to-fire configuration.

"It's big" says Air Force Lt. Col Rank Pullman, "also heavy". The Air Force spokesman also added that aircraft designated to fire the AIM-990e would have to be "big" and be able to "carry heavy things". When asked if the new 10,000lb high explosive device would be suitable for maintaining order in suburban neighborhoods, Col Pullman replied "oh, sh*t yeah".

[Hunterhr]

In before people start whining about the cost overrun in development.

[Kilgor]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AIM-26_Falcon

It is notable for being the only U.S. guided air-to-air weapon with a nuclear warhead.

=)

[mailmannz]

It will take exactly one episode of attack by plane to get this issue cleared up. All the high-minded talk and hand wringing will be crushed under a mountain of litigation and finger pointing, and be replaced by a simple math equation.

I doubt it because the only country that appears to be taking terrorism seriously is America.

All that would most likely happen over here is that America will be blamed for the attack, not the terrorists...and then everyone would just keep on going like nothing had happened.

Mailman