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Aviation History
2001
2001 - 3275.PDF
EDITORIAL +44 (20) 8652 3842 Quadrant House, The Quadrant, Sutton, Surrey SM2 5AS, UK Fax +44 (20) 8652 3840 email fligMMernationaliSirbi.co.uk Editor Murdo Morrison +44 (20) 8652 4395 murdo.morrison@rbi.co.uk Editor's PA Debra Warburton +44 (20) 8652 3835 debra.warburton@rbi.co.uk News Editor Andrew Chuter +44 (20) 8652 3843 andy.chutermi.co.uk Deputy News Editor Emma Kelly +44 (20) 8652 3096 emma.kelty@rbi.co.uk Features Editor DeeDee Doke +44 (20) 8652 3852 deedee.doke@rbi.co.uk Commercial Aviation Editor Max Kingsley-Jones +44 (20) 8652 3825 max.kingstey.jones@rbi.co.uk Defence Aviation Editor Stewart Penney +44 (20) 8652 3834 stemrt.penney@rbi.co.uk Operations/Safety Editor David Learmount +44 (20) 8652 3845 david.learmount@rbi.co.uk Business & General Aviation Editor Kate Sarsfieid +44 (20) 8652 3885 kate.sarsfield@rbi.co.uk Reporter Justin Wastnage +44 (20) 8652 3S63justin.wastnage@rbi.co.uk Spaceflight Correspondent Tim Furniss +44 (1237) 471960 tim@spaceport.co.uk Editorial Assistant Francesca Everett +44(20)86523842 EUROPE/MIDDLE EAST Paris Correspondent Simon Warburton •33 (1) 42 33 6710 simon.warburton@rbi.co.uk Israel Correspondent Arie Egozi +972(3)9671155 Middle East Correspondent Gerald Butt +357 2 771967 gbutt@spidernet.com.cy AMERICAS Washington DC Office Fax +1 (703) 836 8344 Americas Editor Graham Warwick +1 (703) 836 3448 grabam.warwick@rbi.co.uk East Coast Editor Paul Lewis +1 (703) 8363084 jpaul.lewis@rbi.co.uk Washington Correspondent Ramon Lopez +1 (703) 836 7443 ramon.lopez@rbi.co.uk West Coast Editor Guy Norris +1(949)252 8971 Fax+1 (949) 252 8972 guy.norris@rbi.co.uk ASIA/PACIFIC Singapore Office Fax +65 338 6171 Regional Managing Editor Nicholas lonides +65 434 3311 Fax +65 338 6171 nicholas.ionides@rbi.co.uk Deputy Asia Editor Andrew Doyle +65 434 3309 andrew.doyle@rbi.co.uk Regional Reporter David Fullbrook +65 434 3314 david.fullbrook@rbi.co.uk Australia Civil Aviation Correspondent Paul Phelan +61(7)40532791 Fax+61 (7)40533003 phphelan@optusnet.com.au Australia Military Aviation Correspondent Peter La Franchi +61 (0) 419 246 620 Fax +61 (2) 62312795 nulka@02email.com.au ADVERTISING UK S Europe +44 (20) 8652 3319 France S Switzerland Tel +33 (1) 53 2188 00 Italy Tel+39 (02) 236 2500 Singapore Tel+65 434 3303 Hong Kong Tel+852 29651542 1 Australasia Tel +61 (3) 9245 7350 North America Tel +1 (703) 836 7444 Classified S recruitment +44 (20) 8652 3811 FOR FULL LISTING SEE 82 SUBSCRIPTIONS +44 (1444) 445454 rbi.subscriptionsarbi.co.uk THE FLIGHT COLLECTION kim.hearn@rbi.co.uk i\~'F 1 Air Transport Intelligence (ATI), Flight International'ssKte J-\\ J online service at www.rati.com, contains the lull text of Flight M^M International and Airline Businesssince 1996. Full text of the magazines can also be found online with Lexis-Nexis, Dialogue, FT Profile, IAC and Reuters. Editor Kieran Dalf+44 (20) 8652 3837 4gfe REED teS BUSINESS ^iy INFORMATION HTEMUTIMAI COMMENT Harm or good? Plans for sky marshals and armoured cockpit doors on airliners miss the point - terrorists must be prevented from getting on board Last week saw a raft of proposals to counter hijackers in flight: armed sky marshals, armoured cockpit doors, giving guns to pilots and even controlling aircraft- like unmanned air vehicles - from the ground. However, there was scant mention of improved security at air ports, and surely it is better to remove the opportunity for a hijacking than trying to do something about it once it has begun. A concentration on dealing with in-flight incidents rather than trying to eliminate the problem seems to be putting the cart before the horse. There is also a risk that the world is so busy planning to counter the last terrorist outrage (like the military always seems to plan to fight the last war) that the preparations for the next terror attack will be missed or an effective counter not be possible. These quick- fire decisions on a way forward perhaps have more to do with reassuring the public, but such an approach runs the risk that changes that could make a real difference with no increased The clamour to remove sky marshals will be as loud as it is now to introduce such measures threat to the passenger will be overlooked. New security measures should surely be con sidered in the same way as improved safety procedures - are the changes a knee-jerk reaction to a one-off event that could, in some respects, set safety back, or will there be a genuine improvement in security for all time? Although all the suggested security mea sures have obvious potential for deterring or defeating hijackers, they also have the poten tial to do more harm than good. The widespread introduction of armed sky mar shals has received the greatest publicity. President George Bush has pledged to increase their numbers significantly and the US Federal Aviation Administration has started recruiting. But are sky marshals really the panacea that some would have us believe? They are already carried on some flights, for instance those carrying gold bullion, and on every Israeli airline service. But there is a risk in having armed guards on board an aircraft. Talk has been of frangible bullets - which on the whole have been designed for safety on the firing-range during training and not for use in aircraft - and other methods less dramatic than a 0.45in round. Concerns about bullets puncturing the air frame or damaging systems are valid, but it should be remembered that pilots are trained to deal with sudden decompression. However, dealing with one emergency by creating another one is at best a dubious practice. But firing a gun, with or without low-velocity, frangi ble bullets, in an enclosed space is never a good idea, and the sky marshals must receive continual range training to ensure that the tar get is incapacitated with the fewest number of rounds. The first time an innocent passenger- even an unruly one - is seriously injured or killed by a sky marshal, the clamour to remove them from flights will be as loud as it is now to introduce such measures. Cockpit doors are another area receiving much attention. Armoured doors are as much about stopping stray bullets from a sky mar shal's gun as dealing directly with a potential hijacking. The debate whether to lock the cockpit door or not is an old one and for every person that says it prevents unauthorised access to the flight deck another points to the times when access has saved the day. Surely improved airport security must be the way ahead. And not just checks on pas sengers, but everybody that has access to the airside, including crew, maintenance person nel, catering suppliers, airport staff and cargo handlers. Passengers will be concerned that check-in will take longer, companies will worry that operations will take longer, and everyone will be troubled by the cost, privacy and human rights issues. But cost and inconvenience are not good reasons for maintaining the status quo, particularly as both will be reduced as new technology comes online. Israel main tains a 2h check-in policy, which is the same as for long-haul flights from most European airports, so it must be possible to improve security without increasing waiting-times. If governments have to fund the extra cost then so be it. The taxpayer can surely pay a little extra for the additional safety. Such improve ments will not only include technology, but also databases and improved intelligence gather ing and dissemination. As a "belt and braces" approach to prevent ing a terrorist outrage, some of these onboard proposals have validity. As the sole means of dealing with a potential hijacking, they leave a lot to be desired. What is more important is to stop the terrorist believing aviation is a target rather than worrying about how to counter the problem once it has developed. SEE TERROR AFTERMATH P4-11 www.fliqhtinternational.com FLIGHT INTERNATIONAL 2-8 OCTOBER 2001 3
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