Development of Aviation Security - Essay Example

? Aviation Security Introduction There have been tremendous improvements in the aviation security worldwide due to potential threat from criminals and the limitations of the traditional approaches of security enhancement. As more airlines continue privatizing due to liberalization of the aviation industry, the security measures also need to be enhanced to protect the travellers. The safety and security of the people of Australia their visitors is a priority of the government in respects both in public and private aviation practice. The airports Australia very busy with passenger arrivals totalling to 100 million annually, of which, 20% are foreigners. Terrorism and crime are potential threats to aviation security which often happens due to security lapse. The 9/11 attack in America alerted most countries to enhance their security alerts in order to protect their citizens from potential terrorism attacks. Present aviation security systems have got their strengths and weaknesses which have to be closely monitored in order to enhance the aviation security. The development in technology is being applied to help fill the major security lapse which the terrorist and criminals are taking advantage of to pursue their selfish interest. This analysis is of the report of the Joint Committee of Public Accounts and Audit team after they reopened an inquiry into the aviation security systems in order to explore the significant developments in the aviation industry. The joint committee recognized the major initiatives by the government to extend and deepen security standards after continued media reports on criminal activity at the airports. Overview of Security Outcomes as Witnessed in Australia Risk Management, Regulation and Security Outcomes The aviation security industry in Australia has been intensified since 2004 by upgrading several layers of the old regulatory regime. The old regulatory regimes which were upgraded consisted of background checking and access and screening requirement and they have been expanded by widening the criteria of aviation industry participants in order to take care of the broader regulatory framework. Regardless of the model, the aviation security risks are addressing the acknowledged dangers within the aviation industry. The aviation industry in Australia applies the outcomes based regulatory approach as opposed to other methods due to its effectiveness in addressing security issues in the wide and geographically diversified country (Salter, 2008). Implementing the Risk Based Approach Some of the participants claimed that the elements of this security regime remained too prescriptive, thus promoting unwarranted inflexibilities within the security system. The adherence by the regulator to this intelligence led and outcome focused model is faltering within time and should thus be re-evaluated for it to be effective. The claims of inadequacy in the reporting of the regulatory breaches are rampant in delivering the security outcomes as supported by most of the aviation operators. The auditing system is also accused of concentrating on one of the issues and considers the effectiveness of the system which supports the aviation security model. The participants identifies the expansion and upgrading of the regulatory framework as a risk based factor which is too rigid for the achievement of effective security system within the aviation industry. The participants also noted that the underlying reason for the rigidities of the security system as a result of inadequate consultation between all concerned stakeholders within the aviation industry (Commonwealth of Australia, 2006). The Regional Aviation Participants By December 2003, the government announced its intention to extend and upgrade the about the 180 security classified airports and that all the non-jet aircraft with more than 30 sets to fit hardened cockpit door to enhance their security. The aviation Act of 2004 saw the implementation and expansion of aviation security regime from 29 regulated regional airports to 145 previously unregulated airports in the whole region of Australia (Commonwealth of Australia, 2006). These scenarios improved the security levels at regional airports, some of which had very low security risk management strategies within Australia. Some security operators objected the move of expanding the regulatory requirements since the aviation security in Australia has not been based on any commonwealth risk assessment. Among those who objected includes the operator at Mount Gambier Airport in the District Council of Grant who have never experienced any security incident up to date, and are comfortable with the status quo. The operator at Essendon Airport and Linfox airport also argued that the smaller scale operations at the regional airports made them harder target for braches in the aviation industry since its implementation. They argue that such operations initiated a maelstrom of activity and it is easier to be lost in a crowd with terrorist or security breaches. A good example is evident in Avalon Airport in the morning where there is always one aircraft with a maximum of 177 passengers making all the security operations easy compared to Melbourne International Airport with over 20 aircraft at the same time of the morning. The Regional Express Airlines also argued against this move by claiming that the nature and the design of the regional airports which have small staff numbers reduces the likelihood of crime occurring within the aviation industry. The advantage of working with small number of staff is that if any incidence of crime occurs, the culprit can easily be identified and brought to justice with a lot of ease as opposed to working with huge staff. The Regional Aviation Association is also opposed to the move of by arguing that aircraft used in regional services are of little security threat as compared to international carriers, hence should be considered. They also argue by adding that the regional aviation spots are also located too far away for easy access of the criminal, most of which are international in nature. The major metropolitan airports are more likely to be targeted by the international criminals since they contain large numbers of people than the regional airports which are far away and contain less numbers of people. The international terrorist prefers international airports due to their proximity large towns and the impact they expect from one strike (Finane, 2013). The regional airports are not likely to be the target for most crimes due to the limited symbolic value and comparatively low damage with is against the wishes of potential terrorist. The potential threat to regional airports can be classifies as negligible to low and this is also coupled with the fact that they lack the capacity to deploy additional security measures to combat crime. The effectiveness of the implementation of the regulatory regime is also questioned due to minimal funding available for such massive exercise. Adequacy of Consultation The aviation participants in Australia are very wide and questions are arising weather there have been adequate consultation among all the relevant participants. Some aviation participants claimed that inadequate consultation is the results slow implementation of the sound risk security regime with potential benefits in aviation industry. The factors which contributed to ineffective consultation were limited time for industry comment and the announcement of additional security requirements before the finalization of the current arrangements. Qantas acknowledged a strong level of consultation in the initial stages which was quite good, but unfortunately, these discussions were rushed at the final and crucial stages of the consultations. This resulted into the assumptions of most ambiguities leading to abnormalities in the implementation. Toll Transport also argued that unclear regulation arose due to limited consultation leading to lack of differentiating between international and domestic cargo. The Conference of Asian Pacific Express Carriers also confirmed that there of lack of differentiation between screening cargo on passenger flights and the cargo only flight, issues which arose due to limited consultation with concerned parties. The operator of Gerald ton Airport also identified an incident where there is a conflict in the regulations concerning the locking device which is in different parts of the wheels of different aircraft. Sydney Airport Corporation Limited admitted that there was ineffective communication which was largely contributed by the changes in to the security requirements before substantial changes could be realized (Commonwealth of Australia, 2006). The government announced further enhancements just when the industry and the government had just began discussions into the Aviation Act thus limiting the scope of the negotiation process. This was also supported by Qantas who stated that the government announcements were on the basis of community expectations and not on the basis of genuine potential benefits to the aviation industry. Linfox Airports also expressed concern for the government lack of adequate consultation as a return to the old regime of generic approach. The various Industry Consultative Meetings bore little fruit since dozens of issues were raised with no answers leading to more complex issues coming up than before. Uncertainty and the divide between self-assessment and the regulatory requirement Security classified aviation participants are required to address a series through a series of security requirements aimed to protect both local and international interest (Salter, 2008). Under the new regulatory framework, all the aviation operators are required to undertake a risk analysis with reference to international standards. The security participants are required to address a series of security requirements as prescribed by the Aviation Act, which reflect the current security control measures aimed in combating aviation crime. The aviation industry participants are expressing concerns over the poor levels of advice from experts which resulted into unacceptable levels of uncertainty in the operations of most activities in the industry. Provision of Advice There new entrants into the aviation industry found it extremely hard to cope with the regime requirements due to lack of idea on the mechanisms on which the law operates. The applications of these laws require valuable training and information seminars regarding security issues as they apply to the regional aviation industry. A lot of personnel is required to help in facilitating the cumbersome process. Some aviation industry participants claimed unacceptable levels of uncertainty which arose due to lack of proper advice on the adequacy of measures proposed by Transport Security Program in identifying threats and minimum required standards by the law. The participants of Aviation industry also suffer from lack of clarity provided by the Department of Transport and Regional Services, who in most cases, lack the answers to most questions asked (Commonwealth of Australia, 2006). The management at Newman Airport is complaining that they lack the funds to handle significant changes which impose multi-million dollar expenses as required by the Department of Transport and Regional Services. The regulation services which govern the separation of general aviation and Regular Transport apron areas is causing confusion regarding the extent of the use of the apron. Some of the industry participants are taking advantage of the reluctance of the Department of Transport and Regional Services in providing advice in the operation of Civil Aviation Safety Authority to slow the implementation of Aviation security regulation. Most of the industry participants also accuse Department of Transport and Regional Services of not giving adequate information or opinions regarding vital information which are of great importance to the participants. The Civil Aviation Safety Authority is also accused by the industry players as inflexible in dealing with real issues relating to aviation security. The department is also accused of lacking discretion to apply common sense at the airport leading to a lot of guesswork for the participants. The participants also complain for the lack of auditors to do audits concerning the security plan which is operational in their businesses leading to additional cost of paying the risk assessor. The Department of Transport and Regional Services is also accused of laxity in interpreting the legislation to provide reliable information for the industry, instead, they are just good in reading the legislation. Despite increase in staffing levels, the Department of Transport and Regional Services were stretched beyond reasonable limits thus reducing their efforts required to transition the security programs. There is also a big shortfall of experience caused by rapid rise in resources which led to employment if new staff, most of which are not well conversant with the requirements. Advantages of outcomes based security approach as opposed to prescriptive framework The main advantage of outcomes based security approach is that it is able to counter the ever evolving terrorist threat in bigger scale as opposed to prescriptive framework. Aviation industry is a large target for potential victims since it offers large numbers of potential victims coupled with great economic impact. The outcomes based security approach is a robust system built on multiple and complementary of security outlined in legislation, policies and regulations hence is adequate in providing good security system in aviation industry (Salter, 2008). The security system in can hardly be 100 percent efficient and it’s also impossible to guarantee unlawful interference to the aviation systems can be prevented because the resources are finite and must be well managed. An assessment of outcomes demonstrates the likelihood of security lapses and unlawful interference which vary widely across the system. This is well demonstrated by the risk level of small airports which cannot be compared with the risk levels of large and multinational airports. Outcomes based approach thus yield more approaches more effectively in enhancing security in different places. Applying the outcomes based approach implies that the transport security systems should dedicate more time, resources and energy in areas with greater security lapses than others. This calls for the reassessment of the all program to ensure that it remains focused in areas with highest risks in the system. In so doing, the implications of the risk management principles allows for security programs to maximize the security value of resources in providing the best security outcome as required (Finane, 2013). The Australian aviation industry security program has become mature and comprehensive in recent years both in terms of participants and the capacity of the transport department to regulate and oversee the security in the aviation systems. The expertise and the local operational conditions can easily be linked to the outcome based approaches in the industry. The initial prescriptive rules adopted by the Australian industry in regulating the aviation industry was only appropriate for the during the development stages of the industry, but they are not appropriate at this advanced stage of aviation industry. It is quite difficult to establish an efficient and effective regulatory regime based exclusively on prescriptive rules since the aviation industry is often more familiar with the operations of the local conditions. Prescriptive rules provide one size fits all solutions hence lack account for wide variability of operations as witnessed in the aviation industry. Prescriptive methods also lack the necessary skills required by the industry and can thus place unnecessary burdens on stakeholders resulting to ineffective security outcomes with potential harm to the aviation industry. This therefore rules out prescriptive methods and leaves the outcomes rules as the most effective way to address the various security gaps as witnessed in the aviation industry. Conclusion Prescriptive methods continue to be appropriate only in some instances where international standards are to be met, but the outcomes based approaches are more preferable in dealing with diverse aviation environment as witnessed in Australia. The effectiveness of a program depends on its ability to engage the industry and maintaining a constructive dialogue with all the concerned stakeholders. The outcome based approach is good in engaging various stakeholders in the aviation industry and thus is considered as a better method of regulating the aviation industry. The main disadvantage of outcome based security approach is that it is quite involving since all the concerned stakeholders have to be involved in the implementation of the security measures. References Commonwealth of Australia. (2006). Report 409. The Developments in Aviation Security since the Committee’s June 2004 Report 400: Review of Aviation Security in Australia. JCPAA, Canberra. Finane, M. (2013). Terrorism and government: Between history and criminology: Sir John Barry Memorial Lecture, University of Melbourne. Australian & New Zealand Journal of Criminology; vol. 46, 2: pp. 159-177. Salter, B.M. (2008). Imagining Numbers: Risk, Quantification, and Aviation Security. Security Dialogue; vol. 39, 2-3: pp. 243-266. Read More