Associated Press CHICAGO -- President Bush sought to coax Americans back onto airplanes today by putting the federal government in charge of airport security and pledging $500 million to upgrade security features on airplanes in hopes of thwarting future hijackings.
Bush urged governors to call up National Guard units to protect U.S. airports while he implements a long-term airline security plan.
"Get on the airlines, get about the business of America," Bush told hundreds of flag-waving airline workers at O'Hare International Airport. Two jets were parked nose-to-nose at the event-- one each from United Airlines and American Airlines, the carriers hijacked two weeks ago. The attacks left nearly 7,000 dead or missing.
Bush found a message in the two corporate logos: "America is united!" he said. "We are united in bringing justice to those folks who did the evil deed on Sept. 11." As he spoke, departing jets roared overhead.
"We will not surrender our freedom to travel. We will not surrender our freedoms in America," Bush said, his voice rising to a shout. "You may think you have struck our soul, you haven't touched it!"
Terrorists hijacked four airplanes Sept. 11, crashing two into the World Trade Center in New York and one into the Pentagon outside Washington. A fourth crashed in Pennsylvania, apparently after passengers struggled with the hijackers. U.S. air travel has dropped sharply since the attacks.
"The American people are going to get back on your airplanes. They will, believe me, they'll be back on your planes," said Illinois Gov. George Ryan.
"I want to encourage people to take that business trip or the long-awaited vacation they have planned," said Chicago Mayor Richard Daley, drawing a roar of appreciation from the workers.
Bush said he would invest in technologies that allow pilots to monitor passenger cabins by video camera, and let control towers take over "distressed" aircraft by remote control.
"Fully implementing the extensive security proposal may take four to six months," the White House statement said. "During that time, the president will help ensure that every airport has a strong security presence by asking the governors of the 50 states to call up the National Guard-- at the federal government's expense-- to augment existing security staff at every commercial airport nationwide."
White House officials said Bush also hopes to reopen Reagan National Airport outside Washington, the only airport still closed due to the Sept. 11 attacks, but is not yet convinced that flying there would be safe, aides said.
Bush's plan does not include arming pilots, action requested by the pilots themselves. "There may be better ways to do it than that, but I'm open for any suggestion," Bush said Wednesday, as aides privately confirmed that he is cool to the idea.
Continuing the parade of world leaders in Washington, Jordan's King Abdullah II was meeting with Secretary of State Colin Powell today. Abdullah will see Bush Friday. The king is expected to advocate a measured response to the attacks to avoid aggravating an already tense Middle East situation and launching the world into a larger conflict.
Amid the swirl of diplomacy, Jesse Jackson said he was considering whether to accept an invitation from the ruling militia in Afghanistan to take a "peace delegation" to neighboring Pakistan.
Bush advisers quietly urged the civil rights leader not to go and the Taliban said it had not invited him.
One of the government's biggest challenges at home is to make people believe it is safe to fly again.
Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta flew to Chicago aboard a commercial flight to demonstrate his confidence in the air system. He was accompanied by Jane Garvey, head of the Federal Aviation Administration.
Mineta waited in a long line at a BWI security checkpoint. He placed a leather bag on a scanner's conveyor belt, took out his keys and walked through the metal detector. It beeped, prompting a security guard to give Mineta a thorough sweep with a hand-held detector before allowing him onto Concourse A.
Mineta called the system safe, secure and stable.
Bush's father, the nation's 41st president, boarded a commercial flight in Boston for a trip to Houston, accompanied by several Secret Service agents.
White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said the number of commercial flights each day had returned to near normal, now at about 5,500, compared with the maximum before the attacks of 6,500.
However, relatively few people are on those flights. Delta Air Lines, for example, says its planes typically are only 35 percent filled.
Meanwhile, a Pentagon official signaled that a military strike in Afghanistan against bin Laden and his Al Qaeda network was not imminent.
"I think it can't be stressed enough that everybody who's waiting for military action ... needs to rethink this thing," Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz told NATO allies in Brussels, Belgium, on Wednesday.
On the investigative front, 10 people were arrested on charges of illegally obtaining licenses to haul hazardous materials. The move came a day after the Justice Department warned that terrorists might be planning a strike using chemical or biological weapons.
The arrests were made in Missouri, Michigan and Washington state. Authorities said as many as 20 people had the bogus permits, some of whom may have connections to the 19 hijackers involved in the terrorist attacks.
It was too early to tell whether any of those arrested were connected to the Sept. 11 attacks, Justice Department spokeswoman Susan Dryden said.
Those arrested got the licenses from the state of Pennsylvania. According to court records, a driver's license examiner in Pittsburgh provided permits to people who didn't take required tests, had suspended licenses or were otherwise not eligible.
Across the globe, authorities continued to crack down on terror suspects. In Spain, police detained six Algerians allegedly linked to bin Laden, the exiled Saudi millionaire who is the chief suspect in the U.S. terror attacks.
In Britain, authorities captured a French citizen alleged to have been involved in a plot to attack U.S. interests in Europe. In France, seven suspects in the case are under formal investigation, a step before being charged.
There were protests overnight against military action or the United States in Indonesia, Malaysia and Japan. 
