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Airport Security

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Airport Security

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Airport Security
Introduction
Since time immemorial, air travel has been deemed to be the safest mode of transport. Millions of people have safely travelled by air, reaching their destinations safely. Despite this fact, the aviation industry is faced with many security concerns. Since the infamous September 11, 2001 terrorist attack in the United States, there have been concerns that there are loopholes in aviation security. Terrorist activities target airports and civil aviation equipment due to their high values. For instance, in 1985, there was a massacre in Vienna and Rome that was carried out by terrorists in an airport. In addition, there have been reports of aircraft hijacking for a long time in history. These concerns have made the public to feel insecure in air travel. Currently, many countries are overhauling their security systems in airports, so as to counter any security threats. This is an important step towards ensuring that our airports remain secure and regain public trust (Blalock, Kadiyali, & Simon, 2007).
Importance of Airport Security
Over time, the number of passengers travelling by air has been on the increase. Most of the airports record thousands of passengers every single day. Similarly, there has been expansion of airports and the number of aircrafts, necessitated by the increase in the number of passengers. These passengers need to be safe from any terrorist attack or any hazard that may come up in the airport, such as fire break out. In addition, the airport’s assets need to be protected from possible threats. As noted earlier, aviation assets are of high value, therefore, the need to be secured. Airports are installed with modern and sophisticated equipment. Such equipment is worth billions of dollars. Terrorists are attracted to such high value targets available in the airports. Destruction of such equipment will lead to high losses.
Terrorists can hijack a plane and use it to instill fear. They can hide explosives into the plane through luggage that is not properly scrutinized. This way, they can cause deaths of many innocent civilians. This is the reason why airports should put in place stringent measures to ensure that security in the airport is not compromised. Due to the fact that planes carry hundreds of people, a breach in security puts them at risk.
In addition to terrorist activities at the airports, there are issues to do with regular criminal activities. Passengers carry possessions, some of which are very valuable. During their travel, some passengers may have the motive to steal others’ possessions. This leads to increased possibilities of burglary and robbery. Similarly, there are issues of drug trafficking. This is where airport security comes in handy: to eliminate such security concerns (Blalock, Kadiyali, & Simon, 2007).
Responsibilities of Airport Management in Airport Security
Airport security begins with the management of the airport. The management team plays a pertinent role in ensuring that there is safety at the airport at all times. The management is responsible in working closely with the state and federal government. The states and federal governments have aviation committees. Such committees play a role in creating rules and regulations that are meant to ensure the security of the aviation industry. This way the management is in a position to comply with the regulations that are stipulated in the industry. The airport management has to ensure that necessary actions are taken to ensure that the airport is secure. At times, they need to work closely with the employees in the airport. This way they can discover any loopholes in the security system of the airport.
The management, also, works in a close relationship with the shuttle services and airlines. They do so in the quest to ensure that airlines and shuttle services adhere to the security protocols specified by the management of the airport. Management comes up with policies and regulations that govern the operations of such service providers in the aviation industry. Through such policies, the security of the airport is monitored. Therefore, management is critical in the security of any airport (Weinberger, 2010).
Landside and Airside Security Procedures
Airports are divided into two: landside and air side. The landside portion consists of: public railway stations, access roads, and parking lots. The airside portion includes areas accessible to the plane such as taxiways, runways, and ramps. Accessibility to the landside and airside in an airport is always under security personnel. Accessing the airside of the airport one needs to pass through security and passport control. This is applicable to all people, including staff of the airport.
Equipment Used for Security Checks
Airports use much equipment that is meant to ensure that there is high scrutiny of all people entering the airports and planes. Such machines and equipment are meant to safeguard various people from possible harm. The equipment used for the purpose of ensuring airport security is considered to be complex. Without such sophisticated technology in the aviation industry, air travel would be an insecure venture. These machines are used in screening of passengers before they enter the terminal of the airport, to detect any possible harmful objects. Such equipment includes:
Backscatter X-Rays
X-rays are commonly used in airports to detect weapons. The backscatter X-ray radiates an object, producing an image of the object. The security personnel in the airport are, therefore, in a position to see what an individual is carrying. This has become one of the most common equipment used in the aviation industry. The machine has been helpful in apprehending dangerous items such as hidden liquids, weapons, narcotics, and illegal currency from passengers travelling in planes. There are people who are against this machine, since it produces images of the naked body of an individual.
Fiber Optic Perimeter Intrusion Detection Systems
To deal with scenarios where objects that are dangerous or harmful are found, many airports are using a system of protocols that is integrated to send a notification to the relevant authorities. The Intrusion Detection Systems help security personnel in an airport to give a quick response to a situation that is organized professionally. By use of certain procedures the detection system locates the possible threat and deals with it. The system can also notify other airports of the looming threat (Weinberger, 2010).
Ways to Improve and Make Safe Security Procedures For Airports
The security procedures in airports need an overhaul from time to time to ensure that they are in a position to deal with any possible security threat. It is not true that passengers and their luggage are the only source of threat in the aviation industry. Threats can emanate from the operations of the airport itself and the plane it serves: maintenance, catering, ticketing, cleaning, air traffic control, luggage handling, food service, parking, and much more. For instance in 1985, the cleaning crew hid guns in the washrooms of a plane that were later used in the hijacking of the plane. This means that, despite the stringent levels of screening that is done to passengers and their luggage, there may still be other sources of insecurity that may crop up.
To improve airport security, there is need to have security systems that are flexible to cater for security breaches in a timely and appropriate manner. The airport should have in place security teams that are motivated and that have the appropriate skills to perform their duties, while encouraging continuous performance measurement and feedback. The personnel should be equipped with modern procedures and technologies that can be in a position to respond adequately to any looming threat. In addition, there should be intelligence that is shared on a timely basis. This way, the security team can be in a position to detect and take necessary action to avert any possible threat (Gkritza, Niemeier, & Mannering, 2006).
Conclusion
Security in airports is a critical issue. It requires cooperation among all stakeholders, ranging from passengers, staff, to the government agencies that are responsible in regulating the operations of the aviation industry. In addition, the managers of an airport play an important role in linking the other players in the industry towards attainment of the objective of ensuring safety in the airports. They acquire necessary equipment and personnel responsible for maintaining the security of the airport. By maintaining safe airports and aviation as a whole, the public’s trust in air transport will be restored. The current plane hijackings and bombings are not good news to passengers.
References
Blalock, G., Kadiyali, V., & Simon, D. H. (2007). The Impact of Post‐9/11 Airport Security Measures on the Demand for Air Travel. Journal of Law and Economics, 50(4), 731-755.
Gkritza, K., Niemeier, D., & Mannering, F. (2006). Airport security screening and changing passenger satisfaction: An exploratory assessment. Journal of Air Transport Management, 12(5), 213-219.
Weinberger, S. (2010). Airport security: intent to deceive?. Nature, 465(7297), 412-415.

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