Generals now able to down airplanes

WASHINGTON -- Two Air Force generals have been authorized to order the military to shoot down any civilian airliner that appears to be threatening U.S. cities, Pentagon officials said Thursday. \nSeeking to reassure America's travelers of their safety, Secretary of Defense Donald H. Rumsfeld said: "There are a lot of safeguards in place." \nHe said he had crafted the new rules of engagement for military pilots with Gen. Henry H. Shelton, who is retiring as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. \n"The last thing in the world (we) want to do is engage a commercial aircraft," Shelton said. "And so don't get the impression that anyone who's flying around out there has a loose trigger finger." \nRumsfeld was asked if Americans should be worried about the policy since passengers could be trying to overcome a hijacker as people attempted on the plane that crashed in Pennsylvania Sept. 11. That was the only one of four hijacked planes that did not hit a terrorist target. \n"The rules of engagement are addressed on a continuing basis with a great deal of care and sensitivity to all of the points that you've raised and others have raised," Rumsfeld said, refusing to provide details. \n"And I can assure that they are under continuous review and given the most careful consideration. And it seems to me that is the same kind of assurance that the American people get with respect to a lot of things that the Defense Department's involved in." \nWhite House spokesman Scott McClelland said every attempt will be made to follow the chain of command from the commander in chief on down before any order to down a plane is issued and the decision would be made only by very senior-level officials. \n"It's an enormous burden to make that decision. As an absolute last resort, the most senior-level official at the absolute last moment of decision would have the authority to make that decision," McClelland said. \n He said the circumstances for the decision would have to involve a plane headed nose down and posing a threat to the safety of Americans \n Michael Perini, director of public affairs for the North American Aerospace Defense Command, stressed that only under the most extraordinary circumstances could the generals act without having consulted with the president, secretary of defense or other higher-ups — only as a last resort and only if there simply was not enough time to consult. \nFrom NORAD offices in Colorado, Perini said he could not discuss a specific situation in which the regional commanders might take such action because it would reveal too much about military planning for the defense of U.S. airspace.