Marshals must in foreign planes: US

US officials announced today that any foreign airliner entering American airspace could be required to have armed police on board.

‘‘We are asking international air carriers to take the protective action as part of our ongoing effort to make air travel safe for Americans and visitors alike,’’ Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge said in a statement. The announcement came after US officials intercepted intelligence indicating that Al Qaeda may try to hijack foreign airliners for a repeat of 9/11. The new requirement was issued under an emergency amendment to existing regulations, Homeland Security Department said. It applies to all passenger and cargo planes.

Homeland Security Department spokesman Dennis Murphy said US officials would notify foreign carriers when air marshals were needed. ‘‘It is on a flight-by-flight basis. We will notify airlines when we have information on a specific flight,’’ he told AFP.

Murphy said the carrier’s country would have to provide the law-enforcement personnel, who are to be armed, trained and qualified to protect the passengers, crew and the plane. The rule ‘‘requires the same level of cooperation from all airlines’’, he said. ‘‘We are getting voluntary cooperation from several airlines. This makes cooperation mandatory, not voluntary.’’