WASHINGTON, July 17 (UPI) -- U.S. air marshals want the Department of Homeland Security to reconsider new dress and grooming standards, the New York Times reported Saturday.
The new standards prohibit beards, jeans and athletic shoes and prescribe suit coats, ties and dress shoes. Female marshals must wear blouses and skirts or dress slacks, while jeans, athletic shoes and non-collared shirts are prohibited.
Marshals fear the new rules will make it easier for terrorists to identify them, said John Amat, a spokesman for the 1,300-member Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association.
"If a 12-year-old can pick them out, a trained terrorist has no problem picking them out," Amat said.
In April the association sent a letter to Congress saying that the "military-style grooming standards and a blanket 'sports coat' dress policy," along with conspicuous boarding procedures, jeopardize the safety of air marshals.
Meanwhile, the Allied Pilots Association and the Association of Flight Attendants, are backing the marshals' concerns.
