The European Parliament last week called for a "strict" regulation on the use of Sky Marshals onboard aircraft.MEPs are insisting that weapons "shall not be carried onboard an aircraft, unless the required security conditions have been fulfilled, and authorization has been given by the state granting the operating license to the air carrier concerned." They are demanding prior approval by the state of departure, the state of arrival and, where applicable, "any state which is overflown or where intermediate stops are made." No member state will be obliged to accept inflight security officers.

The amendment, which is in its first reading, is part of plans by the European Commission to update the common EU aviation security rules introduced after 9/11.

MEPs also decided that the costs of the security measures should be met by passengers and member states, though if a member state wants to impose even more stringent measures, it would have to cover the whole cost. The report stressed that security taxes and charges must be used "exclusively to meet airport or onboard aircraft security costs." To avoid any distortions in the market, they called on the Commission to propose a uniform system for the financing of airport security measures.