05 March 2009

Cathay chief slams passenger security shambles

HONG KONG - Cathay Pacific CEO Tony Tyler has called on the aviation industry to work towards a more efficient and harmonised process of aviation security that can make life easier for the millions of passengers who keep the industry alive.

In a speech to the International Aviation Security Conference, Tyler said that Cathay Pacific is strongly supportive of a move, led by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) and the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), to accelerate the harmonisation of security standards through one-stop security.

ââ¬ÅâœThe airline industry has been trying to achieve this since 1997 but progress has been painfully slow and sporadic,ââ¬~ he said.

The Cathay chief said there was no suggestion that the industry should relax its guard, ââ¬Åâœbut I strongly believe we have to make a greater effort to tackle some of the long-standing issues that make the security process more difficult and more costly than it should be.

ââ¬ÅâœI have lost count of the number of times customers have complained to me about the ambiguities and lack of consistency they encounter in security requirements in the worldââ¬â¢s airports.

ââ¬ÅâœSome airports require you to take out your laptop, others donââ¬â¢t; some make you remove your shoes, others donââ¬â¢t; some want you to take off your belt; others donââ¬â¢t.

ââ¬ÅâœWhat kind of message does that send to passengers?

ââ¬ÅâœThey are understandably puzzled and frustrated and more than occasionally worried about these inconsistencies.

ââ¬ÅâœTake liquids and gels, as another example. As Giovanni Bisignani of IATA asked pointedly in a recent speech in New York, where is the data that shows that a shampoo bottle is a greater risk than a belt buckle? There is none. Yet we spend millions to limit carry-on liquids.

ââ¬ÅâœThe bizarre array of rules currently in place serves only to confuse and annoy passengers, create unnecessary costs for airlines and caterers and place strain on security staff.ââ¬~

Tyler said that ââ¬Åâœinconsistent and poorly conceivedââ¬~ rules bring the whole security process into ridicule, while imposing unproductive cost onto the airlines and frustrating all concerned ââ¬' passengers in particular.

ââ¬ÅâœThere are solutions waiting out there to iron out all the anomalies. We must find them and implement them,ââ¬~ he said.

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• Well done to Cathay chief for article on passenger security
  
  

  Thank you to Tony Tyler for his realistic comments about the inconsistency of passenger security at various airports around the globe. While we all realise the importance of this security screening, the frustration that it produces at the entry points is massive. Security personnel are simply carrying out what is required of them. It is the industry that needs to treat its lifeblood a little more patiently and compassionately. As a regular business and private traveller, I often cringe about the ridiciulous inconsistency travelling from one point to the next. Tony Tyler gave several examples which thousands of passengers face each day. We need to encourage people to travel...not make it harder for them. Well done Tony...airlines so often are accused of putting profit before service these days...Tony's recognition of 'the customer' and others who work in the industry was refreshing from a corporate leader. I have never flown Cathay however this attitude from the top Tony has swayed me...great to see an executive with understanding that it's the passenger who is the lifeblood. Signed...Neil M. McLean VP Global Communications Allotz.com (www.allotz.com)

  By Neil McLean, Thursday, March 5, 2009
• Confusion good?
  
  

  A standard world-wide would be researched, understood and, eventually, breached. By retaining the current confusion terrorists don't know what they have to deal with on a day by day basis. At least that's one explanation I've heard suggested. I have some sympathy with it.

  By Graham Harrison, Thursday, March 5, 2009