Aviation Security: Suspicious people

Just last year was a difficult time for commercial airlines. When covid hit the number of passengers dropped and some airlines paused flights all together. Late last year things started opening back up. Now we have a new issue on top of what already exist in general aviation. People forgot how to act in public. Using the sixth sign of terrorism, Suspicious people, we can see how TSA aims to remedy the issue (TSA Information Publication A-001, Version 2 July 2017). 

With health concerns and emotions raging many parts of the TSA layers are in over time. imagine being 30,000ft in the air and a fight breaks out over trivial matters. While in itself it might not constitute a real threat, it may give place for a threat to occur. If the fight breaks out there could be another passenger waiting for an opportunity to strike. Even with no screened weapons almost any object can be used as a weapon. Just moment can pass and a hostage situation can take place. With 20 layers at work to prevent this there are three in particular I want to mention in order to show how the layers do not only work individually but in a cohesive team. 

Although you wont recognize them there might be an Air Marshal on board. When issues arise they step in and handle the situation. Until touchdown (TSA layers of security 2017).  Along with their intense firearms training they are put through scenarios that could happen while on board. Crew members are another layer that would be utilized. They both would be using the layer “intelligence” to know what to look for in strange behavior. This in itself is a layer know as “ Behavior Detection”(TSA layers of security 2017). With all of these in action during a flight, even if an event takes place, the elimination of the threat is almost certain. The only recommendation that I could make is to look at past examples of failures to stop attacks efficiently and even make hypothetical situations and train the Marshals and flight crew together. A great team is one that is on the same page. 

                                                                        References

TSA layers of security 2017, https://www.tsa.gov/blog/2017/08/01/inside-look-tsa-layers-security

Transportation Security Administration ,Information Publication A-001, Version 2 July 2017.

    https://www.tsa.gov/sites/default/files/2017_ga_security_guidelines.pdf