US Airways fires pilot for arguing with screeners at Philadelphia airport

PHILADELPHIA - The Air Line Pilots Association is appealing the dismissal of a US Airways pilot who says he was fired for refusing to take off his hat at an airport security checkpoint. <br> <br> Capt. Ed Graf was arrested in October and charged with disorderly conduct following the incident at the checkpoint at Philadelphia International Airport. Authorities said he was combative and refused to follow an officer&#39;s order. <br> <br> Graf, 51, said he was fired two weeks later, and his appeal to the airline for reinstatement was rejected Jan. 18, according to the union. <br> <br> Airline spokesman David Castelveter declined to discuss the case or those of two other US Airways pilots who were disciplined for arguing with or making insensitive comments to security screeners at the airport. One of the other pilots made a comment about a gun, forcing the evacuation of a terminal; the other suggested that as a pilot, he could bring down a plane without a weapon, authorities have said. <br> <br> The union blamed irregular security practices and overreaction by police and screeners at the airport, one of the airline&#39;s hubs. <br> <br> &#34;This is not about the person causing any kind of safety problem,&#34; union representative Roy Freundlich said. <br> <br> <br>