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re Small Plane "Threat"; Been there, done that
From: Dave Farber <dave () farber net>
Date: Sat, 20 Feb 2010 16:33:21 -0500
As a former pilot I agree. djf Begin forwarded message:
From: Mikki Barry <ooblick () ego org> Date: February 20, 2010 2:37:56 PM EST To: dave () farber net Subject: Re: [IP] Small Plane "Threat"; Been there, done that
There are no mandated security inspections of private automobiles either, and those licensees are not subjected to criminal background checks nor required nearly the licensing requirements as private pilots, the vast majority of whom fly 2 to 4 seat aircraft for weekend pleasure. There are no mandated security inspections for big rig trucks that cruise America's highways. Most freight placed on board commercial aircraft are not screened either. And don't even start with the cargo on ships or trains.This shock and outrage that free American citizens can spend the money and time to become licensed pilots and actually fly aircraft for pleasure without passing through metal detectors or x-ray machines occurs each time one out of the almost 600,000 licensed pilots in this country does something stupid. Of the 87,000 flights per DAY in the United States, occasionally one falls out of the sky and hits something, or is very very rarely directed into a building, usually killing only the person on board the aircraft. Yet every time it happens, the cry goes out for general aviation to be more regulated "for security reasons."The idea is as ludicrous as what happened immediately after 9/11/2001 when DCA was closed to general aviation. Aircraft that were already parked there were finally allowed to leave, but only provided that the minimum allowable air crew flew the planes out with no other passengers on board. My flight instructor had his leatherman tool taken away from him by TSA before he could fly alone in his own aircraft, leaving the airspace.What kind of security do we want for people in their own private vehicles whether they be land based, water based or air based? Who will perform it? Who will pay for it?On Feb 20, 2010, at 1:03 PM, Dave Farber wrote:Begin forwarded message:From: "Brock N. Meeks" <bnmeeks () verizon net> Date: February 19, 2010 11:39:11 PM EST To: dave () farber net Subject: Small Plane "Threat"; Been there, done that Dave,Here’s an old MSNBC article I wrote on the lax security of Ameri ca’s general aviation airports. I remembered it after seeing wh at Joe Stack had done flying a plane into the IRS building in Au stin. And remember, my story is seven years old, circa 2003.Big Holes Seen in Aviation Security By Brock N. Meeks MSNBC 11-18-2003 No screening for thousands of private flights, passengersWASHINGTON, Nov. 18 — Federal workers at the nation’s largest co mmercial airports screen everything from toddlers to tennis shoe s, but there are few such requirements in place for the more tha n 200,000 privately owned planes located at more than 19,000 air ports in the U.S. that make up the country’s general aviation se ctor. That fact was noted in recent congressional testimony by a General Accounting Office official to underscore findings that general aviation is “far more open and potentially vulnerable th an commercial aviation.”THE Transportation Security Administration has “taken limited ac tion to improve general aviation security,” since Sept. 11, 2001 , GAO’s Cathleen Berrick, director of Homeland Security and Just ice Issues, told the Senate Commerce Committee during a Nov. 5 h earing on aviation security. The vulnerability of general aviation stems, in large part, Berrick said, from the fact that “pilots and passengers are not screened before takeoff and the contents of general aviation pla nes are not screened at any point.”That’s true for the vast majority of flights in the general avia tion, which is broadly defined as “all aviation other than comme rcial airlines and military aviation” that includes “small, sing le-engine pistons to mid-size turboprops to large turbofans capa ble of flying non-stop from New York to Tokyo,” according to the General Aviation Manufacturers Association.About four percent of all general aviation flights, those planes weighing 12,500 pounds or more, must adhere to the security regulations laid out in a federal law known as the “twelve-five” rule. Crews on these aircraft must undergo criminal history che cks. Operators of “twelve-five” aircraft “must adopt and carry out a security program approved by TSA to ensure that pass engers and their accessible property are screened prior to board ing,” says an entry in the Federal Register noting the implement ation of the rule.But implementation of those rules is spotty; there’s no routine federal inspection to ensure adherence with them, though a TSA s pokesman said the agency does conduct regular inspections to “to ensure that the rules are being implemented.”According to the GAO, which is the investigative arm of Congress, about 70 percent of all general aviation planes are four- to six- seat, single-engine, piston-driven propeller planes. These types of planes, like a Cessna 172, cruise about 145 mph and fully loaded weigh less than a Honda Civic.May 2003 advisory note In May, the Department of Homeland Security issued a warning to the general aviation community that terrorists were interested in using small planes packed with explosives to attack U.S. targets. The basis of the warning came on the heels of a foiled plot to fly “obtain a small fixed-wing aircraft or heli copter [loaded with] with explosives” and crash it into the U.S. Consulate in Karachi, Pakistan, the warning said. The warning n oted that such a plot demonstrated “al-Qaida’s continued fixatio n with using explosives-laden small aircraft in attacks.” The warning noted that the impact from such an explosion would be akin to “a medium-sized truck bomb.”Because of lax security measures, such planes could easily be rented with just a credit card or simply stolen, the warning suggests. In Berrick’s testimony, she notes that 70 general avia tion aircraft have been stolen in the last five years, “indicati ng a potential weakness that could be exploited by terrorists.”Such vulnerability “was demonstrated” in January of 2002, Berric k said, “when a teenage flight student stole and crashed a singl e-engine airplane into a Tampa, Fla., skyscraper.”But such statements and examples are viewed with skepticism by those with vested interests in general aviation. “We basically feel that the whole premise that the typical [gene ral aviation] aircraft can be used as a terrorist weapon is flaw ed,” said Chris Dancy, a spokesman for the Aircraft Owners and P ilots Association. “These small planes just don’t have the kinet ic energy, don’t have the carrying capacity to be an effective w eapon,” Dancy said. In addition, there’s never been a verified e pisode of a small plane actually being used in a terrorist incid ent, the association says.RISK MANAGEMENTThere are no overarching federal guidelines for security at general aviation airports despite the fact that some of these airports rank among the nation’s Top 20 in terms of overall traf fic.Part of the problem is that general aviation airports cover a wide- range of facilities, from rural to urban. “The 2,000-foot, grass strip, public use airport that’s privately owned, does not have the same needs as a large general aviation airport like Manassa s in Washington, and TSA has sort of set up the machinery to let those airports assess their needs and act accordingly,” Dancy s aid.Of the 19,000 general aviation airports in the U.S., 5,400 are publicly owned, the GAO says, and “TSA is currently focusing its efforts on these publicly owned airports. ... TSA is still uncl ear about its role in inspecting privately owned general aviatio n airports.”To help set up some kind of standard, TSA is leaning heavily on the industry itself. The agency “set up the aviation security ad visory committee, which is helping to develop check lists for in dividual airports to assess their security needs and then take a ppropriate action,” Dancy said. That committee will later this m onth deliver a range of security recommendations to TSA that wil l then be used to set up a tiered system of security practices. “Unlike the air carrier airports, one size cannot fit all for ge neral aviation,” Dancy said.Working with groups like AOPA, TSA has instituted a number of measures to help increase the level the security surrounding general aviation, said Brian Turmail, an agency spokesman.One of the major programs is “airport watch,” which functions mu ch like a “neighborhood watch” program that encourages pilots to keep an eye out for suspicious behavior, Turmail said. The prog ram includes a government-sponsored hotline for pilots to call a nd report any concerns. Other steps TSA has taken include putting flight restrictions in place for national sporting events and working with local law enforcement to visually identify pilots of banner towing airplanes.TSA, in conjunction with the Federal Aviation Administration cross- referenced “every single airman’s certificate with our list of k nown foreign terrorists and known threats to civil aviation,” Tu rmail said. As a result of those efforts, the FAA revoked the ce rtificates of some 20 pilots over the last 18 months, Turmail said.Turmail acknowledged the difficulties of crafting a security program to deal with the challenges created by general aviation. “Our approach can be summed up as threat-based, risk-managed,” T urmail said. “What is the threat posed by certain types of aircr aft and how do we allocate limited resources to put in place the best possible security?”‘LOW-HANGING FRUIT’Sometimes that means just reaching for the “low-hanging fruit,” like implementing “airport watch” type programs, working with lo cal police to verify banner towing aircraft or placing flight re strictions over “clearly visible targets like Washington, D.C., and at times, New York City,” Turmail said.And TSA also is beefing up the paper-trail security by working with Treasury Department to implement new guidelines on aircraft purchases to flag things like all-cash transactions and third- party payments, Turmail said. TSA also is working with the Justice Department to implement a flight-training candidate check program that highlights foreigners seeking U.S.-certified training in the operation of larger aircraft.Despite general aviation’s best efforts, small planes continue t o be seen as a major risk. Just last week, a single-engine plane “punctured the bubble” of the flight-restricted zone surroundin g the White House; an errant pilot had simply wandered off course.Far from being a “non-event,” the incident caused NORAD to scram ble a couple of F-16 fighters to intercept the perceived threat. Although the president and first lady weren’t in the White Hous e at the time, the vice president and other senior members of th e White House staff were immediately moved to a secure location by the Secret Service until the threat was gone.Archives
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