Bill to protect planes from missiles clears panel = = = = Thursday April 29, 6:53 PM EDT = WASHINGTON, April 29 (Reuters) - A proposal to speed development of anti-= missile systems for passenger planes cleared a U.S. legislative hurdle on= Thursday, but top industry officials remain unconvinced the technology i= s reliable or worth the expense. The House of Representatives subcommittee on aviation approved the measur= e that also encourages the Bush administration to strengthen efforts thro= ugh treaties or buyback programs to reduce the availability of shoulder-f= ired rockets. The primary thrust of the bill is to streamline regulatory procedures for= approving anti-missile protection for commercial aircraft, if the Bush a= dministration moves forward with plans to develop it. The Homeland Security Department is in the midst of an 18-month research = and development program for placing anti-missile systems on planes. = = = Northrop Grumman Corp. (NOC), Britain's BAE Plc (BA) and United Airlines = (UALAQ) were selected this year to refine the concept for heat-seeking co= untermeasures and submit cost proposals. "Shoulder-fired missiles continue to pose a serious threat to civil aviat= ion," said Florida Republican Rep. John Mica, chairman of the aviation pa= nel and a co-sponsor of the legislation. Fears about potential attacks on planes surged in 2002 when portable miss= iles were fired at, but missed, an Israeli airliner in Kenya. Attacks on = military and cargo aircraft in Iraq have stoked concerns more recently. Although some preliminary price estimates peg installation costs at $10 b= illion to outfit the entire U.S. fleet of nearly 6,000 planes, industry e= xecutives said this week the cost of maintaining anti-missile systems on = heavily used commercial planes could be prohibitive. "We're not there yet," Allan McArtor, chairman of Airbus North America Ho= ldings Inc. (EAD), said of developing reliable and affordable anti-missil= e technology. "I think that the federal government ought to go slow," said Jim May, chi= ef executive of the Air Transport Association, the chief lobbying group f= or major U.S. airlines. = =A92004 Reuters Limited. = Roger EWROPS