Will the Air Marshal in 1B please ring your call button

Out yesterday were notices of a report from the House Judiciary Committee that is highly critical of the Federal Air Marshal Service.

The draft report by theHouse Judiciary Committee, a copy of which was provided to The Associated Press on Friday night, identified several policies by the service that the report concluded undercut the goal of preserving the marshals' anonymity.

The report, entitled "Plane Clothes: Lack of Anonymity at the Federal Air Marshal Service Compromises Aviation and National Security," cites the service's dress code, which is supposed to prevent marshals from drawing attention to themselves.

"In practice, however, many federal air marshals indicate that the dress code actually draws more attention to the identity of the federal air marshals because of its rigid requirements that prevent federal air marshals from actually blending in with their surroundings," the report says

For anyone who flies a lot, you can tell when there's a FAM onboard. But this report really nails the issue.

Go read the story at Captain's Quarters.