Threat of Terrorism in Aviation
`One thing aviation and many other industries have in common is that they have been advanced by war. An example of this is during World War II when Nazi Germany made the first jet powered fighter aircraft. The Messerschmitt Me 262. More recently one of the advancements of aviation has been through the use of military drones, which have now created a civilian market for drones and other UAV's. GPS and radar are tools that pilots use pretty much everyday and they were created by the military and now they are a part of everyday aviation.
In my opinion one of the greatest threats facing the aviation world is if GPS got turned off by the government in an emergency or in a conflict. Pilots, (myself included) are too dependent and complacent on GPS. If GPS got turned off with planes in the sky there would certainly be some planes that would not safely land.
With all of that being said Terrorism is another form of warfare. Looking back over time hijacking has been a form of warfare that has been used where someone will demand that the pilot's fly them some where else, demand money, and or physically take over controls of the aircraft. The first reported hijacking in history occurred in 1931 in Peru. Armed revolutionaries demanded that a Pan Am Pilot fly them to another city, the pilot refused (The Retrospecters, n.d.). Throughout the 1970's and 1980's hijackings came very prominent especially in war torn countries that were experiencing turmoil. There were lots of incidents where people would say they have a bomb and to fly them somewhere and have the authorities give them money. The most famous instance of this would be that of DB Cooper who, has still not been found. The most famous hijacking of all took place on September 11th, 2001. On September 11th, 2001, a group of Al-Qaeda terrorists hijacked two Boeing 767's and two Boeing 757's and crashed two of them into the World Trade Center in New York City, New York. One into the Pentagon in Washington DC, and another that was suspected to be enroute to the White House or the Capitol Building in Washington DC. The passengers on the last flight, United Flight 93 had heard the news of the hijackings and decided that they needed to take the plane back over so that they would not fly into a building themselves (US DOI, n.d.). A struggle in the cockpit between the hijackers and passengers ensued and the plane crashed in a field in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.
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| Here is the Flight 93 Memorial in Shanskville Pennsylvania |
In my opinion one of the greatest threats facing the aviation world is if GPS got turned off by the government in an emergency or in a conflict. Pilots, (myself included) are too dependent and complacent on GPS. If GPS got turned off with planes in the sky there would certainly be some planes that would not safely land.
Another thing to look at is the mental health of the pilots and the crew. Just this past week, a student in flight school in Addison Texas departed in a Cessna 172 and told ATC he was not going to follow their instructions and that he was pulling the breaker on the microphone (Staff, 2024). He climbed up to 11,000 feet which is pretty high for a 172 and nose dived it into the ground in a field (Staff, 2024). These are the threats that are currently facing aviation. Obviously TSA has done a really good job in the recent years of catching things that do not need to be going on commercial flights. I would say that general aviation is currently under a greater threat of an act of terrorism than the commercial world is.
There are still lots of airports around the country where you can walk up to the gate and the gate code is Squawk VFR and you can walk out on to the ramp where airplanes are sitting. A lot of the time they're unlocked and the key is in them. Which that's ok, because the average person will not even be able to start an airplane, much less take off in it. However someone that is up to mischief and wants to do harm or knows a little bit about flying could do harm to themselves or others.
Steele Lankford
References
The Retrospectors. 21 Feb: The First Hijack (n.d.). https://theretrospectors.com/the-first-hijack/
Staff, F. 4. (2024, January 25). 23-year-old killed after stealing, crashing plane from Addison Flight School, Investigators Say. FOX 4 News Dallas-Fort Worth. https://www.fox4news.com/news/plane-stolen-from-addison-flight-school-crashes-in-fannin-county-pilot-killed-dps-says
U.S. Department of the Interior. (n.d.). Flight 93 national memorial (U.S. National Park Service). National Parks Service. https://www.nps.gov/flni/index.htm
I enjoyed reading your blog, I did not hear about the incident that occurred in Texas with the pilot crashing purposely into the ground, It is crazy someone can just do that, and no one can do anything about it.
ReplyDeleteThis was interesting to for the fact that, i had never really even considered or though of a pilot killing himself while in training, i would think that there would be some type of safety measure implemented to control the aircraft when a student does not follow directions to take control, anf bring them down to a safe landing.
ReplyDeleteHello Sir,
DeleteYour post is fascinating; it's hard to believe how easy it is to steal an aircraft. However, some people are in positions that make it easy to do such a thing. In 1984, a marine, Lance Cpl. Howard Foote stole a jet for a joy ride. The risks would outweigh the costs, but it worked out for him. He only spent four and a half months in jail and was later discharged with an other-than-honorable discharge, and later flew as a civilian. I also work on a flight line, and something like this would be easy for me and many of my co-workers, especially given that we have to run this aircraft many times for many reasons. Primarily, we run them for troubleshooting or maintenance that has been accomplished or, if needed, to qualify another person on engine runs. Although, none of us would ever do anything like that and risk our career or in any way want to endanger anyone else. However, you are right in the sense that there is always a risk, and at any time, something like this could happen.
Respectfully,
Kenneth Huddleston
Hello Steele,
ReplyDeleteYour post was fascinating and informative. I find it very concerning that mental health is just as bad or worse than terrorism in this day and age in America. That being said, I would rather it be this way than the other way so fewer people can get hurt. Honestly, I don't know If we will ever be able to solve that problem, but I believe we can lessen it by doing more psych evaluations on.
Hey Steele!
ReplyDeleteYour post was a great read and I whole heartedly agree, the interplay between warfare and aviation brings to light serious challenges, particularly in the realm of security against terrorism and hijackings, with the September 11th attacks being a stark reminder of the vulnerabilities within civil aviation. The reliance on GPS technology poses additional risks, potentially jeopardizing aviation safety if disrupted. Furthermore, the mental health of aviation personnel and the security of general aviation are pressing concerns, highlighting the complex relationship between military advancements and aviation. These developments call for continued vigilance and proactive measures to address both the benefits and vulnerabilities introduced by military innovations in the aviation sector.