WASHINGTON, July 11 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - Displeased with the level of airline security, the U.S. House of Representatives voted Wednesday to allow U.S. airline pilots the authority to carry lethal weapons, over riding objections by President George W. Bush's administration. 

In a landmark 310-113 vote, the House authorized the immediate arming of all volunteer passenger-jet pilots to carry guns and defend the flight deck against terrorist attacks. The bill now goes to the U.S. Senate for consideration. 

The bill would require that pilots undergo government-approved training in how to use firearms and would give pilots the right to decide not to carry a gun, reports news agencies. 

Pilots, through months of aggressive lobbying by their unions, say their members want to carry guns because loopholes remain in airport security. They demanded the right to carry firearms aboard passenger planes to help prevent a repeat of the September 11 attacks that killed some 3,000 people, despite strong opposition by the Bush administration, which insists pilots should focus on flying. 

Lawmakers, however, have said they were dissatisfied with the Bush administration’s conclusion. 

"I like many others - the people that fly our airliners - are concerned about their safety," Representative Leonard Boswell said shortly before the vote. 

"The last resort possibility is to arm our pilots [and] I think we're doing the right thing. 

"I think we'd all feel a lot better" with armed pilots flying passenger planes, he said. 

The U.S. Congress last year agreed to let pilots carry handguns at the discretion of the airlines and the administration. But the plan to arm pilots was never enacted. 

The Bush administration has preferred to boost airline security by improving safety checks and having armed air marshals on board commercial flights. 

Arguing that the safety of their passengers was at stake, and that the federal government has not done enough to improve airport security since the Sept. 11 hijackings, pilots have said only lethal force could counter a deadly threat. 

The legislation gained support after a report by the new Transportation Security Administration showed that many weapons can still get through airport security checkpoints. Fatal shootings at a Los Angeles International Airport ticket counter July 4, although they occurred outside checkpoints, heightened concern, reports the Washington Post. 

They also have strenuously argued that because the U.S. military has been given the all-clear to intercept and shoot down any plane they believe terrorists have usurped, they should have the right to use weapons as a last resort. 

In the Senate, where a similar bill has stalled and where lawmakers have had trouble moving the legislation due to the opposition of a senior senator, supporters said Wednesday they hoped to build on the unexpectedly strong support for the House bill.  

Duane Woerth, president of the nation's largest pilots union, the Air Line Pilots Association, said, "Our hope now is that the Senate and the White House will recognize that the overwhelming House vote reflects enormous public support for arming pilots, and that they will work toward making this a successful program." 

Florida Republican Rep. John Mica, a key supporter of the bill, said, "America's airline pilots know best that they can both control their aircraft and defend their cockpits when necessary…They have asked for the ability to defend themselves and their passengers. Today, the House acted on this measure. The Senate should do the same," reports news agencies. 

Rep. Don Young (R-Alaska), a bill sponsor, called for the Senate to act on the House bill and said he was not concerned about a presidential veto because the House could override it, reports the Post. 

Proponents of the bill received a boost, touting a significant victory by winning over anti-gun advocate Senator Barbara Boxer. 

"I have decided, after long and careful thought, that until I am satisfied with the number of air marshals on commercial flights, this bill is a necessity - indeed it is a matter of life and death," Boxer said. 

Given the opposition of senior Senator Ernest Hollings, chairman of the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee, who strongly opposes arming pilots and has refused to hold a hearing on the bill, lawmakers said they were prepared to attach the bill to other legislation, thereby bypassing Hollings and going straight to a vote on the Senate floor.