The Sept. 11 terrorist attacks have many people looking for a solution to the security problem on airplanes. Politicians and political activists have come up with a number of possible ways to make flights safe again.

One that seems to draw the liking of a lot of people is adding steel doors to a plane’s cockpit. This would make it much more difficult for potential terrorists to come in contact with a pilot.

Sounds good, doesn’t it? Keep the terrorist out and he or she can’t direct the flight to go where he or she wants.

Well, what happens if a terrorist or hijacker gets through the door? We are back to the same situation we were in the week of the attacks.

Although price is not on the minds of most people right now, this would be rather costly. Putting steel doors on every passenger plane in the country couldn’t be cheap. And you know who is going to pay for it.

We will. If the federal government funds the project, we as taxpayers will pay for it. If the airlines pay for it themselves, the cost will be passed down to us, the consumers.

I understand we need to spend money to ensure the nation remains secure, but there are other alternatives. This is something that could be phased in over time with a combination of other things.

Another idea is to put an armed military police officer, reservist or a U.S. Marshal on every passenger flight.

The cost for this would be atrocious if this is the long-term answer. To put a government employee on every flight is just not realistic.

The third option is being pressed by the Air Line Pilots Association, a union that represents some 67,000 pilots in the United States and Canada.

The ALPA is asking the federal government to allow pilots to carry a gun when flying. What immediately comes to the mind of many is what happens if the pilot shoots and misses? Won’t that depressurize the cabin?

No it wouldn’t.

The bullets the ALPA want to arm its members with come apart on impact. They can cause serious damage to the human body, but they can not pierce through the body of a plane.

The ALPA wants the government to provide a voluntary armed pilots program to pilots who want to carry a firearm while flying.

This is a problem I have with the idea. The government should not need to provide it; it should be paid for by the union or the airline. Yes, it might affect cost a bit, but not nearly as much as the other options.

So what’s the answer?

All of the above.

Although expensive, the steel doors could be installed gradually. They would serve as the first line of defense on an airplane. The nation could absorb the cost with ease if these were not just immediately placed on all planes, but rather gradually installed.

In the meantime, we still need some sort of protection on planes.

Until pilots receive the proper training, using military personnel on the planes would be the best way to go about combating terrorists. Keep in mind, this is only temporary. As pilots are trained, the military leaves.

Arming pilots is much more cost effective than using the military.

Arming pilots is a must. Hijackings have changed a great deal in just a short amount of time. It used to be a hijacker would hold the entire plane ransom and law enforcement officers would do their best to make sure the plane landed and no one was hurt.

Now, we are worried about people running the things into skyscrapers.

We need someone to be armed on these planes, and again, pilots are cost effective.

And who better to carry a gun on a plane? Think about it. A large portion of pilots are ex-military men who have been trained to use a weapon.

With a combination of trained armed pilots and steel doors, the skies can be safe for once and for all.

Zach Calef is a sophomore in journalism and mass communication from Cedar Rapids. He is an assistant news editor at the Daily.