neppinger and i'm hoping that he can provide steady leadership that is badly needed at tsa to bring tsa into a new and more effective chapter. while it is clear he will have his work cut out for him, i believe that his experience in the united states coast guard will be a valuable asset to tsa and i look forward to working with him and hearing his plan to fix the agency. since the beginning of the 114th congress, this subcommittee has aggressively examined several issues related to tsa's operations, policies and procedures in order to ensure that tsa is fulfilling its mission of keeping the traveling public safe. today, we will examine what many have called the last line of defense against potential terror attacks in the sky. that is the federal air marshal service. the federal air marshal service was significantly expanded in the wake of the terror attacks of september 11th, 2001. the outcome of 9/11 could have been very different if we had federal air marshals on those planes. however, we also have to keep in mind that the threat to aviation security has evolved dramatically over the

before we begin, i would like to express my support for administrator net binge or, -- neppinger, whoassumed his position last week. i had the opportunity to sit down with him and am hopeful he can provide the steady leadership that is badly needed at tsa, to bring tsa into a new and more effective chapter. while it is clear he will have his work cut out for him i believe his experience in the united states coast guard will be a valuable asset to tsa. i look forward to working with him and hearing his plans to fix the agency. since the beginning of the 114th congress, this subcommittee has aggressively examined issues created to -- related to tsa operations, policy, and procedures, to assure tsa is fulfilling its mission of keeping the traveling public safe. today, we will examine what many have called the last line of defense against potential terror attacks in the sky -- the federal air marshal service. the federal air marshal service was significantly expanded in the wake of the terror attacks of september 11, 2001. the outcome of 9/11 could have been very different if we had real