Security Threats In the Air

Emerging Security Threats

When people think about aviation security threats, first thing that comes to mind is the 9/11 incident whereby an aircraft was hijacked mid flight and crashed, causing the death of many. Many fail to recognise that as technology advances, the imminent threats are becoming more innovative and creative. With that, I would like to share more on unmanned aircraft threats, and how they can pose a risk to the aviation industry. Unmanned aircraft such as drones can be used as a surveillance technique to gather data and also hack ground and air systems. Due to it being relatively small and inexpensive to build in nature, the deployment of the unmanned aircraft system can be discreet and yet pose significant threat to the aviation industry as it can even be used to transport and deploy weapon systems of any nature (Tomáš et al., 2012). Because it is so small, most unmanned aircraft systems may even go undetected by radars which can be extremely dangerous as it potentially infringes airspaces. In worse cases, it can also lead to damage to aircraft as it intercepts an aircraft's flight path.

Mitigating Factors. Are They Effective?

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) adopts 20 layers of aviation security in the United States, covering a broad spectrum from ground to air security (Burns, 2017). However, they do not exactly combat the threats posed by unmanned aircraft systems as it generally covers the security aspects of travellers such as through screening and profiling. Despite that, the layers employed by TSA are currently extremely effective against any security threats posed by travellers entering and departing the United States, ensuring the safety of all. Having said that, the fact that some airports have military facilities that are positioned within the vicinity can aid in air defences against the unmanned aircraft or any other hostile aircrafts to deter any security infringements (TSA, 2017). Although unmanned aircraft poses much of a security risk to the aviation industry, it can also be employed as a form of deterrence against other hostile unmanned aircraft that plans to cause harm or damage to airports (Tomáš et al., 2012). All in all, security threats are constantly evolving as terrorists come up with more innovative ways to infiltrate defences and inflict harm to people. It is therefore important for security measures that are set in place to evolve accordingly to tackle such threats so as to safeguard the safety of everyone.

References

Burns, B. (2017, August 1). Inside Look: TSA Layers of Security | Transportation Security Administration. TSA. https://www.tsa.gov/blog/2017/08/01/inside-look-tsa-layers-security

Tomáš, S., Ivan, K., & Stanislav, S. (2012). Present and potential security threats posed to civil aviation. INCAS BULLETIN, 4(2), 169–175. https://doi.org/10.13111/2066-8201.2012.4.2.17

Transport Security Administration (TSA). (2017). Security Guidelines for General Aviation Airport Operators and Users. TSA. https://www.tsa.gov/sites/default/files/2017_ga_security_guidelines.pdf