Training Sky Marshals is Deadly Serious Business

SEATTLE — For any frequent flier, the scene is so routine, it borders on the invisible.

As the packed jetliner reaches cruising altitude, a flight attendant appears at the front of the plane to announce that passengers are free to move about the cabin. At the rear of the Boeing 737, other stewards prepare coffee and snacks. A few folks stand to retrieve items from the overhead bins.

But the deceptive calm will be shattered by deadly chaos. And I, the flight's sky marshal, am the only one who can stop it. As a strapping man makes his way toward the cockpit, my heart rate soars as my palms press hard into the heavy steel of a Beretta 92F pistol.

This airborne drama is a video-based simulation created by Advanced Interactive Systems, which devised a pair of scenarios that reflect both the events of Sept. 11 and the input of hijacking experts. While security concerns mean that little is known about the federal sky marshal program, founded in 1968 to counter hijackings to Cuba, AIS' simulator provides a look at how future sky marshals might train to protect increasingly threatened skies.

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