9/11 On That Day (Video)
Category Archives: Aviation Security
Two Decades After 9/11 – What Have We Learned?
Just a couple of years ago, at an industry conference, an individual in their early 20s stood up during a panel session and asked what the big deal was about 9/11 and why we have all these security measures. As if the death of 2,977 people in the worst attack the U.S. has ever seen… Continue Reading
Richard Branson is bringing spaceflight back, but with it comes challenges to US airports
“Watch this,” I told my two boys who were up with me on Sunday morning, July 11th, as Richard Branson took off for his historic spaceflight. “You are about to see history being made.” Branson’s flight to the US recognized Karmin line (i.e., edge of space) represents where I thought our country would be by… Continue Reading
Mask it or Casket
Somehow, TSA has tasked their personnel and those individuals working at airports with mask enforcement duties. The FAA does not have a regulation for terminal buildings. The TSA regulations on terminal facilities focus on security, not on public health, so how this is enforced from a legal perspective is tenuous. Despite that fact, no matter… Continue Reading
Domestic terrorism, drones, and the decline of Western Democracy
Domestic terrorism is clearly on the rise. According to the Center for Strategic and International Studies[1], as of 2020, right-wing groups and individuals comprise the majority of domestic terrorism incidents, particularly between 2014 and 2020. The assault on the U.S. Capitol seems to be the watershed moment when everyone is now paying attention and demanding… Continue Reading
Drone Wars: Is TSA Seriously Going To Shoot Down Drones Over US Airports?
On July 17 of this year, police responded to a drone with fireworks attached to it discovered on top of a building in downtown Los Angeles. Further details have not been released about the incident, but it does represent just one of the many threats drone operations can represent to airports, infrastructure and people. In… Continue Reading
The Nightmare Scenario – the Insider Threat
The recent report of an American Airlines employee sabotaging a flight in order to obtain more overtime represents the biggest threat to commercial aviation. Not only do you have an employee with access to an airport, but also to an airliner, with a legitimate reason to be crawling around the innards of the plane, and… Continue Reading
Why Are More Guns Showing Up At Airports?
Article Originally Published in the State Aviation Journal May, 2019 Why have gun seizures at US airports gone up by 357% over the past ten years? In 2008, TSA 926 seized guns at screening checkpoints. Last year they seized 4,239 and the rate continues to increase. If you haven’t heard, you can’t carry a gun in… Continue Reading
Remain Overnight: Whether You Want To Or Not
The Toronto airport again has played a role in aviation security. It was 134years ago, June 23, 1985, when the deadliest airline bombing in history took down Air India Flight 182. The flight had departed from Vancouver, made a stopover in Canada en route to London, but all 329 on board were killed by a… Continue Reading
Paranoia, will it destroy ya – or will it save ya? Columbine, 20 years later
Would you rather live life blissfully unaware of the hazards around you, but exceedingly happy and fulfilled, unafraid and experiencing all that life has to offer, only to be killed suddenly in some sort of violent attack, or would you rather live your entire natural life, prepared and hyper-aware of the violence around you, even… Continue Reading