GOVERNMENTS AND AVIATION SECURITY
Governments are the last line of defense
when it comes to shaping policy concerning aviation security. Since there is no
overarching global regulator to oversee all governments in every country, the
handling of aviation security policy ultimately comes down to individual
governments themselves.
As a result, the aviation industry faces
challenges related to individual governments and how critical aviation security
issues are handled by each. Industry desperately needs governments to overcome
these obstacles in order to have a more secure and effective aviation market.
Let’s discuss some governmental challenges in the aviation sector.
Global
Security Standard
There is a lack of a global standard for
security. While there are industry suggestions published by entities such as
the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and the International Air
Transport Association (IATA), these organizations have no power to directly
enforce their recommended standards and practices on individual governments.
Still, all countries must find a way to unite and strive to achieve the same
universal baseline level of security regardless of membership to international
organizations or not. The risk of losing passengers, aviation crew, cargo, and
infrastructure is nothing to take lightly.
Government
to Government Cooperation
When one country enacts a new security
policy or policy update, there has to be some level of coordination with other
countries affected by the action. Working out details of international policies
ahead of time ensures enough resources will be allocated and the new process is
clear to all entities involved. When they are not, passengers, aviation
professionals, and the entities in between (including airlines) suffer the
consequences.
Information
Sharing
Along with government to government
cooperation, comes info sharing. Currently, we are still not at a point where
information is shared freely amongst one another. Lack of information sharing
in the aviation industry is problematic. Knowledge gained of the latest risks,
threats, and concealment techniques should be available to other governments
needing to know. Since these often lead to revised security policies,
cooperation among entities is required to guarantee security issues are
addressed efficiently and in a consistent manner from country to country.
Effective information sharing can save countless lives.
Technology
to Market
Pushing new security screening equipment
to market is an important task. The latest innovations and technological
advances accelerate the screening process and assist with countering new
threats. Governments must be supportive of equipment manufacturers and
encourage constant research and development. They must expedite the process of
getting detection equipment to market quickly. In addition, if governments
worked together to establish a global certification system, redundancy of
equipment certifications could be reduced dramatically. We must get ahead of
threats as much as possible and government support for bringing technology to
market can help with that.
Trusted Traveler
Program
Trusted traveler programs are a useful
tool to reduce queue times at the airport by vetting low-risk individuals in
advance. These programs have been successful and governments need to establish
more of them. Governments must work together to connect individual programs
into a universal database. If information about trusted travelers is shared
amongst each other, passengers would likely experience a seamless screening
process anywhere in the world, airports would be able to deliver quicker
throughput, and more time could be spent countering known risks. An overarching
trusted traveler database would be extremely advantageous.
Conclusion
Due to the
lack of a global regulator, the burden of aviation security rests upon
individual governments of each country. Because of this disparity, there are a
handful of governmental challenges presented to the aviation industry. What
additional challenges does the aviation sector face? Send in your comments to
email address below.
Col Rajendra
Shukla(Retd)
Daksh
Consultants
India
Representative- Safe Passage International
shuksrp@gmail.com
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