It looks like sanity has prevailed in Air Marshall land:

Air marshals were told Thursday they will be allowed to dress the way they want and choose their own hotels in order to protect their anonymity while on missions.

Federal Air Marshal Service chief Dana Brown, who has been in the job for five months, said he was changing the rules, starting Sept. 1, after listening to air marshals' concerns.

In a memo to the air marshals, Brown said the dress code was changed to ``allow you to blend in and not direct attention to yourself, as well as be sufficiently functional to enable you to conduct your law enforcement responsibilities.''

Air marshals had complained that Brown's predecessor, Thomas Quinn, insisted on a too-formal dress code that allowed people to pick them out. The marshals said, for example, that being forced to wear a jacket and collared shirt made them stand out on flights to Hawaii.

. . .

Air marshals also won an agreement from Brown to let them choose their own hotels ``within economic and related guidelines'' to help keep their identities secret.

Marshals claimed that their undercover status was threatened because they had to stay at designated hotels and show their credentials when checking in.

A recent report to Congress found that the Sheraton Fort Lauderdale Airport Hotel in Florida had designated the Federal Air Marshal Service ``company of the month'' because of the number of rooms it had reserved at the hotel.

I remember when this point was raised in late September of 2001...better late than never, I guess. Up until now, finding an Air Marshall on your flight was like playing "Where's Waldo for Dummies". It will be nice when that is a distant memory.