The Department of Homeland Security recently announced that they would require travelers from foreign airports with direct flights to the United States to possibly turn on their cell phones, tablets and laptops in order to prove they are functional and not concealing an explosive. This is not without precedence. In the late 80s and early 90s… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Aviation Security
Did you hear about the latest hijackings?
I’m sure you all are very concerned. In fact, I’m sure you’re tired of the public outcry about yet another hijacking, and this time by the copilot of the aircraft. I’m not talking about Malaysia Flight 370. I’m talking about an Ethiopian Airlines Flight 702, bound for Rome, that was hijacked in February 2014 and diverted… Continue Reading
Stowaway to Hawaii
The recent report of an individual stowing away aboard a Hawaiian Airlines flight from San Jose to Maui again brings forth the question of perimeter security at airports. A couple of years ago with the infamous jet skier at John F. Kennedy Airport along with a few other perimeter breaches that year raised concerns throughout… Continue Reading
Are we paying too much for Airport Security?
Are you paying too much for Airport Security measures? According to a recent study, yes. But, before you take a gigantic ax to your next years annual security budget, consider what the study assessed, and more importantly, what it didn’t. The study was published in the Journal of Air Transport Management looked at the “Cost-benefit… Continue Reading
What’s Making News in Airport Security?
As it seems the search for Malaysian flight 370 is starting to fall farther back in the news cycle, and the growing trend that more experts are thinking this is a safety not a security incident (such as a fire or rapid decompression), there are a few recent reports regarding airport security worthy of mention… Continue Reading
Was Malaysia Flight 370 Hijacked?
U.S. officials now say that manual intervention was involved in the missing flight and Malaysian officials are calling it a hijacking. Some aircraft systems continued to transmit information for several hours after the aircraft went off radar, which may indicate that the transponder (the radio transmitter that provides information to the radar facility), was shut… Continue Reading
Malaysia Airlines Flight 370
The disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 and the subsequent finding that two of the passengers on board had stolen passports has stirred up plenty of speculation that terrorism could be involved. And it could. But, without additional information there are also numerous other possibilities. The criminal community often will use fraudulent documents and stolen credentials… Continue Reading
Are We Safer – Part 10: The Conclusion
Throughout this 10-part series, I’ve addressed the question: Are We Safer since 9/11. When we were attacked on 9/11, I had already served several years in the aviation security industry and I felt I’d not done enough (as many of us did). Part of my mission became to make sure that we weren’t asleep at… Continue Reading
Are We Safer – Part 9: General Aviation Security
Shortly after 9/11 a 16-year-old boy took a Cessna 172 and flew it into the side of the Bank of America building in Tampa, Florida. Since it was only six months since the terrorist attacks, the hue and cry went up from the largely uneducated (on aviation) public, about what to do about these little… Continue Reading
Lockerbie: 25 years later
I missed an important anniversary yesterday – the 25th anniversary of the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. The bombing was eventually linked back to the country of Libya, who used operatives working for Libyan Airlines, based in Malta at the time. They placed a radio “boom” box containing an explosive… Continue Reading