Last week the Travel Industry Association released a study showing that air travel hassles have cost the economy over $26 billion because passengers avoided taking some 41 million trips over the last 12 months. Security is only a portion of those travel hassles, to be sure, but it is an area (unlike fuel prices) where passengers should feel their concerns are being heard, if TSA’s new Checkpoint Evolution is an indication.

There is a tendency for us as Americans to think that improving the status of homeland security means deploying more Border Patrol Agents and better trained TSA screeners. However, there are instances when the DHS uses its regulatory authorities to advance security in a way that is flat wrong. Requiring airlines to play a pivotal role in US VISIT EXIT is one such example. DHS recently issued the US VISIT EXIT proposed rulemaking which makes little sense and flies in the face of the successful pilot program the Department has undertaken.

Aviation Daily on Airports: New!! Towers and Tarmacs - The Radio Show!
I’m a big fan of Podcasts. I have at least 10 different shows loaded on my iPod, and most of them update their shows daily or weekly. So the light bulb went on - why not do one for Towers and Tarmacs?
There’s [...]

Schneier on Security: Airlines Profiting from TSA Rules
Before 9/11, airlines and security personnel — and I use the term “security personnel” loosely — might have let a nickname or even a maiden name on a ticket slide. No longer. If you have the wrong name on your ticket, you’re probably grounded. And there are two [...]

Each day, airports work to ensure that air travel is safe and secure. In fact, it is the industry’s number one priority. Partnering with airlines; tenants; the Transportation Security Administration (TSA); and federal, state and local law enforcement, airports are working aggressively to enhance security. Last week, Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-MS), Chairman of the House Homeland Security Committee, introduced the “Biometric Enhancement and Airport Vulnerability Reduction Act of 2008,” which would direct the Secretary of Homeland Security to conduct a study on how airports can transition to biometric control systems for airport workers who have unescorted access to secure or sterile areas of the an airport.

DHS official: Airlines best suited to run fingerprint program (5/1/08) — www.GovernmentExecutive.com
The Homeland Security Department’s policy chief Thursday cautioned the nation’s airlines not to push to have the federal government take fingerprints of foreigners leaving from the nation’s airports, saying shifting the responsibility to the public sector would likely lead to flight disruptions.
The department is [...]

The Heritage Foundation will host next week a forum on cargo security entitled Homeland Security and Inspecting Shipping Containers: Debating the Way Forward. Two of Security Debrief’s contributors will participate – former DHS Undersecretary Asa Hutchinson, who is also now head of the Safe Commerce Coalition, and Dr. James Carafano, who is the senior fellow for foreign policy, homeland security and counter-terrorism issues at the Foundation.

Agree or disagree, the fact is that President Bush’s DHS has made a Herculean effort to move from day to day crisis management to a more thoughtful consideration of threat based risk management priorities. As all parts of DHS begin placing emphasis on emergency preparedness, TSA is emerging as an excellent example.

After five years of getting beaten up routinely by the Congress on a bipartisan basis, the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) appears to have found a whole new set of friends in Congress. As sister agencies CBP, ICE and FEMA face increasing scrutiny and oversight, Kip Hawley’s recent testimony shows that Members are almost surprisingly satisfied with the the security aspects of air travel.

At the invitation of DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff, last week, Airports Council International – North America staff met with the Secretary and TSA Administrator Kip Hawley to discuss the security benefits of the Registered Traveler Program.
Secretary Chertoff engaged in a discussion and dialogue with the assembled group regarding this matter which included high-level DHS and [...]

To those who believe that DHS and TSA are simply fighting yesterday’s war, I point to the trial of the liquid explosive plotters (from August 2006) currently taking place in London. The details emerging from the trial are a reminder to all that terrorists remain interested in attacking the global iconic air transportation system.

The TSA got it right - this time anyways! A number of security events have occurred in the airline industry over the past week that warrant mention and evaluation – some of them show sound judgment by TSA and other government agencies while others show that we still have a lot of work to do.

Aviation Daily on Airports: Now Taking Off - TSA’s Airport Security Checkpoint of the Future
The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) unveiled a pilot program at Washington National that will test features for the airport security checkpoint of the future, which I covered in the April 1 issue (subscribers only) of Aviation Daily.

You don’t have to be a PR expert to expect that the words “nipple” and “pliers” composed in the same sentence of any afteraction report is likely to end badly.

It seems somehow fitting that the state that launched the Civil War is once again leading the charge to defy the federal government — though in this case the stakes are far less deadly. Rather than bullets flying, you can expect a lot of curses. And even then only at airport terminals.

A key development in the aviation security arena occurred yesterday when TSA formally announced the seven airports that will take part in airport employee screening pilot tests as required by the Omnibus Appropriations Act passed by Congress in January 2008. In the formal TSA announcement, TSA Administrator Kip Hawley said that “[t]hese pilots will give [...]

Rep. Markey has demagogued the cargo security issue for years, purely for political reasons it seems to me. Given the body of evidence that requiring physical inspection of each piece of air cargo will not measurably add to improved security, yet it will certainly add significantly to the costs to the customer, one wonders if Representative Markey is aware of how hollow his comments seem to be?

With Congress threatening to force TSA to physically examine every piece of cargo prior to accepting it for transport, the air cargo system faces a near-certain failure. Today’s US aviation industry is fighting for its very survival; industry consolidation will take place as carriers look for cost savings. Jet fuel prices are beyond sustainable levels with the current ticket pricing structure. A Congressional mandate along an apparent misinterpretation of the 9/11 Law to mandate physical screening of every box, may well cause the Perfect Storm that causes the demise of the airline industry.

Under the REAL ID Act, federal agencies are prohibited, effective May 11, 2008, from accepting a driver’s license or a state-issued personal identification card for an “official purpose” unless the issuing state is meeting the requirements of the REAL ID Act. Bottom line? Travelers from non-compliant states will likely encounter significant travel delays because they will be required to undergo secondary screening.

One trembles to think where the former DHS Inspector General’s deep pockets end — particularly since the public would be paying for his spending binge — and common sense begins. Besides making airports an even greater misery than they already are in terms of waits, lines, crowds, screaming babies and tired angry travelers … would putting screeners at the entrances of airports prevent violence? September 11th was wrought with box cutters. What creativity could be brought to bear among the many stores and equipment located in airport terminals? Would the Starbucks employees need security clearances?