New demands for more GA security

From an AP article today:

"Officials said that the thousands of general aviation airports - which host
recreational planes, business jets, helicopters and other kinds of
noncommercial aircraft - must all have security measures that are equivalent
to TSA mandates at commercial airports."

It would be interesting to know precisely what "officials" said this, but
the article refers to them only as "officials" throughout.


--
Christopher J. Campbell
World Famous Flight Instructor
Port Orchard, WA


Ne Obliviscaris

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/14/po...rtner=homepage

On Mon, 14 Mar 2005 07:33:18 -0800, C J Campbell
wrote:

From an AP article today:

"Officials said that the thousands of general aviation airports - which
host
recreational planes, business jets, helicopters and other kinds of
noncommercial aircraft - must all have security measures that are
equivalent
to TSA mandates at commercial airports."

It would be interesting to know precisely what "officials" said this, but
the article refers to them only as "officials" throughout.

FBI and Homeland Security - both genuine experts on aviation...

Yep.... and replace the word airplane with boat, car, truck, train,
taxi-cab, subway, bus, motorcycle, bicycle, skateboard, rollerskate, or
horse and buggy and it would make just as much sense.

"Paul kgyy" wrote in message
oups.com...
FBI and Homeland Security - both genuine experts on aviation...

"Ray Bengen" wrote in message
news

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/14/po...rtner=homepage


The article still only refers to them as "officials." No names. It is not
even clear that these particular "officials" work for the FBI or Homeland
Security; only that the "officials" are commenting on a report written by
those organizations.

The vast majority of terrorist attacks seem to be with car bombs and rocket
propelled grenades, yet I have not noticed a call by any "officials" for
metal detectors and bomb sniffers in every garage. I want to know who these
"officials" are and I want to know why they have not been fired.

In article ,
says...
From an AP article today:

"Officials said that the thousands of general aviation airports - which host
recreational planes, business jets, helicopters and other kinds of
noncommercial aircraft - must all have security measures that are equivalent
to TSA mandates at commercial airports."

It would be interesting to know precisely what "officials" said this, but
the article refers to them only as "officials" throughout.



Will they put three shifts of TSA wanders with xray machines at the
little field I use that has maybe 10 departures per day? Need both
genders for the selectee grope. At least 6 full timers. The security fee
could get pretty steep.

On Mon, 14 Mar 2005 07:33:18 -0800, "C J Campbell"
wrote in
::


It would be interesting to know precisely what "officials" said this, but
the article refers to them only as "officials" throughout.

For those who care to read more about this without divulging their
personal information to the NY Times, here are the more important
parts of the article:



http://www.nytimes.com/2005/03/14/po.../14terror.html
Government Report on U.S. Aviation Warns of Security Holes
By ERIC LICHTBLAU

Published: March 14, 2005


ASHINGTON, March 13 - Despite a huge investment in security, the
American aviation system remains vulnerable to attack by Al Qaeda and
other jihadist terrorist groups, with noncommercial planes and
helicopters offering terrorists particularly tempting targets, a
confidential government report concludes.

Intelligence indicates that Al Qaeda may have discussed plans to
hijack chartered planes, helicopters and other general aviation
aircraft for attacks because they are less well-guarded than
commercial airliners, according to a previously undisclosed 24-page
special assessment on aviation security by the Federal Bureau of
Investigation and the Department of Homeland Security two weeks ago.

....

While Homeland Security and the F.B.I. routinely put out advisories on
aviation issues, the special joint assessment is an effort to give a
broader picture of the state of knowledge of all issues affecting
aviation security, officials said.

The analysis appears to rely on intelligence gathered from sources
overseas and elsewhere about Al Qaeda and other jihadist and
Islamic-based terrorist groups.

A separate report issued last month by Homeland Security concluded
that developing a clear framework for prioritizing possible targets -
a task many Democrats say has lagged - is critical because "it is
impossible to protect all of the infrastructure sectors equally across
the entire United States."

The aviation sector has received the majority of domestic security
investments since the Sept. 11 attacks, with more than $12 billion
spent on upgrades like devices to detect explosives, armored cockpit
doors, federalized air screeners and additional air marshals.

Indeed, some members of Congress and security experts now consider
airplanes to be so well fortified that they say it is time to shift
resources to other vulnerable sectors, like ports and power plants.

....

Still, the new aviation assessment, examining dozens of airline
incidents both before and after the Sept. 11 attacks, makes clear that
counterterrorism officials still consider the aviation industry to be
perhaps the prime target for another major attack because of the
spectacular nature of such strikes.

The assessment, which showed that the F.B.I. handled more than 500
criminal investigations involving aircraft in 2003, will likely serve
as a guide for considering further security restrictions in general
aviation and other areas considered particularly vulnerable, the
officials said.

The report, dated Feb. 25, was distributed internally to federal and
state counterterrorism and aviation officials, and a copy was obtained
by The Times. It warns that security upgrades since the Sept. 11
attacks have "reduced, but not eliminated" the prospect of similar
attacks.

"Spectacular terrorist attacks can generate an outpouring of support
for the perpetrators from sympathizers and terrorism sponsors with
similar agendas," the report said. "The public fear resulting from a
terrorist hijacking or aircraft bombing also serves as a powerful
motivator for groups seeking to further their causes."

The report detailed particular vulnerabilities in what it called "the
largely unregulated" area of general aviation, which includes
corporate jets, private planes and other unscheduled aircraft.

"As security measures improve at large commercial airports, terrorists
may choose to rent or steal general aviation aircraft housed at small
airports with little or no security," the report said.