Airline group questions latest security measures
KUALA LUMPUR – A regional airline association has questioned the effectiveness of the latest airport security measures introduced following the Christmas Day attempt to blow up an aircraft in the United States.
The Association of Asia Pacific Airlines said that treating each of the six million passengers who fly every day as potential terrorists and subjecting them to virtual strip searches and pat-downs “already borders on the absurd, particularly when compared to our approach to public security in other aspects of our daily livesâ€.
“Doing so comes at a cost, already measured in tens of billions of dollars annually.â€
AAPA continued, “Whilst new screening technologies are constantly under evaluation, including full body scanners and automatic explosive detection systems, there is insufficient evidence regarding their effectiveness to justify their immediate deployment, not to mention unresolved health and privacy issues.
“The current debate on the merits or otherwise of passenger profiling raises a number of other important issues of fairness and preservation of human dignity, given the fact that 99.99 percent of passengers, even from supposedly higher risk categories, are entirely innocent.
“Rather than focus on ever more intrusive passenger screening, the key lesson from this, and previous terrorist incidents, is the critical importance of effective intelligence gathering and analysis.
“Clearly, both inter-agency and inter-governmental cooperation needs to be reinforced.â€
Commenting on the current state of affairs, Andrew Herdman, director general of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines said,
“Despite recent events, public confidence in the safety of air travel remains high.
“Good security is all about comprehensive threat assessment and balanced risk management, not the elimination of every conceivable risk.â€
However, he cautioned, “It would be a tragedy if that confidence were to be undermined by ill-judged reactionary measures being taken by those entrusted with maintaining public safety.
“The sudden introduction by national governments of uncoordinated new security requirements, without prior consultation, makes practical implementation difficult.
“The fact that such requirements are unpublished, and even in some cases unwritten, inevitably leads to inconsistency of application.
“Far from reassuring passengers, the likely result is further confusion and unnecessary inconvenience.â€
Ian Jarrett
Vegas’s Billion-Dollar Secrets – What They Don’t Want Tourists to Know
Visit Florida’s New CEO Bryan Griffin Shares His Vision for State Tourism with Graham
Chicago’s Tourism Renaissance: Graham Interviews Kristin Reynolds of Choose Chicago
Graham Talks with Cassandra McCauley of MMGY NextFactor About the Latest Industry Research
Destination International’s Andreas Weissenborn: Research, Advocacy, and Destination Impact
Graham and Don Welsh Discuss the Success of Destinations International’s Annual Conference
Graham and CEO Andre Kiwitz on Ventura Travel’s UK Move and Recruitment for the Role
Brett Laiken and Graham Discuss Florida’s Tourism Momentum and Global Appeal
Graham and Elliot Ferguson on Positioning DC as a Cultural and Inclusive Global Destination
Graham Talks to Fraser Last About His England-to-Ireland Trek for Mental Health Awareness
Kathy Nelson Tells Graham About the Honour of Hosting the World Cup and Kansas City’s Future
Graham McKenzie on Sir Richie Richardson’s Dual Passion for Golf and His Homeland, Antigua
ADS PRO 
Phocuswright reveals the world's largest travel markets in volume in 2025
Higher departure tax and visa cost, e-arrival card: Japan unleashes the fiscal weapon against tourists
Cyclone in Sri Lanka had limited effect on tourism in contrary to media reports
Singapore to forbid entry to undesirable travelers with new no-boarding directive
Euromonitor International unveils world’s top 100 city destinations for 2025