S E C U R I T Y
Brexit
Hayward meets with the UK
Civil Aviation Authority (CAA)
and with the UK government’s
Department for Transport to
discuss screening regimes for
FBOs on behalf of the BBGA.
For the UK, aircraft that qualify
for screening weigh 10 tonnes or
more, while the EU sets the bar at
15 tonnes. “The UK has more stringent
measures in place,” says Hayward.
“We must ensure that
our country is kept safe
from people that may be
Jason Hayward, BBGA FBO workgroup chair
There is a European baseline for FBO
up to no good”
security and the UK plans to continue following it
whether the UK is in the European trading bloc or not.
“I know from talks with the DfT Department for
Transport and the CAA that they are very keen to keep the
UK regime in alignment with the EU’s,” Hayward says. “They
certainly will not be taking shortcuts and going below the
current baseline. The CAA will make sure airports are being
compliant with the rules.”
All EU member states’ regulators can choose to add
what they will call more stringent measures, but they can’t
go below the EU regulation baseline. Dialogue with industry
stakeholders, such as the BBGA, and regulators generate
any extra security measures.
“It really is a case of working with the regulatory
authorities to ensure that we are putting efficient processes
in place,” Hayward says. “The UK economy needs people
to keep moving, but we must also ensure that our country is
kept safe from people that may be up to no good.”
Cyber rules
Worldwide, it is the International Civil Aviation Organization
(ICAO) Annex 17 which governs security. One of Annex
17’s standards recommends that a government should
ensure the company conducting general and corporate
aviation operations has a written security program that
is implemented and maintained, where the aircraft have
a maximum take-off weight of more than 5.7 tonnes.
The recommendation is not mandatory. Bakr says, “If
the member of state does not feel the urge to make it
mandatory, this leaves aviation vulnerable to various security
problems,” he says.
Another obstacle to security screening or identification
verification can be the passengers. Business aviation
clientele are often high-profile individuals, government
dignitaries, aircraft owners and government representatives,
Above: High profile clients
look to business aviation
operators and airports to
provide effective protection
from threats
26 | BU S INE S S A I R P O RT INT E RNAT I ONA L JA N UA RY 2 0 2 0
who can be affronted by the
screening process. Such
individuals will guard their
privacy and cyber security,
another area that needs to be
addressed by business aviation.
Programs that identify critical information,
systems and data are needed by airports
and FBOs. They need to develop and implement protective
measures to protect all their digital systems within the facility
from malicious internet intrusion or sabotage.
Industry best practice, ICAO standards, EU and national
regulations provide a picture of a comprehensive framework,
yet there are few government examinations of business
airport security or reports that mention it. Combined with
evidence of the patchy application of good procedure,
business aviation appears contradictory – flawed, but also,
on the face of it, in good working order.
AOPA’s Airport Watch program
The Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association’s (AOPA) Airport Watch program is
about the community working with government to be more vigilant in protecting
general aviation (GA) aircraft and promoting a strong security culture.
As part of the program business airports are encouraged to follow voluntary
US federal government guidelines to enhance their security.
Other standards are in place for airports with commercial services. AOPA
has surveyed airports across the USA and it found that most of them had made
changes in accordance with TSA guidelines and their own proactive initiatives.
These security measures included, bringing law enforcement personnel on to
the airport grounds and implementing identification checks and improving
fencing. Since the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001 airports have been
able to report suspicious activities through AOPA’s Airport Watch program and by
using the US government’s telephone hotlines. Before or since 9/11, no business
aircraft have been used for terrorism in the continental United States.
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