Dear Editor,

Please allow me to say to Mr Colin Gaul and his supporters that while I do not agree with the physical abuse that he is supposed to have received at the hands of members of the Barbados Police Force, nor the fact that the suggested abuse occurred in the presence of his young child, he is fortunate that he was not on a plane sitting or flying in American or Canadian controlled territory. Had this been the case, and especially since September

11, 2001, regardless of whatever he thought was justification for his outburst, he would have been forcefully removed from the aircraft and taken to the nearest detention facility to await an appearance before the first available judge. Mr Gaul would have been better advised to have addressed his concerns with the appropriate BWIA authorities once he had completed his flight to Guyana. In this way neither airport staff, flight attendants nor the police would have been involved and his son would not have been witness to this unsavory situation.

On a final note I would like to remind those who advocate that the aircraft captain should have investigated the situation, that most, if not all, airlines are now moving in the direction of securing pilots in their cockpits behind locked, barred doors rather than having them, as in the past, being mediators in situations such as the Gaul affair. Their job is to fly the planes. Passenger and aircraft security is now being left to law enforcement authorities, e.g. air marshals, police, etc.

Rather than berating the Barbados Police for the way in which they handled the situation, all aboard the plane in question should be applauding their efforts to step in line with the new world reality in an effort to assure (their) passenger safety.