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Assessing Threats to Tunnel Security and Their Remedies: A TSI Virtual Roundtable

Assessing Threats to Tunnel Security and Their Remedies: A TSI Virtual Roundtable

Around the globe, transportation tunnels play a vital role in keeping rail and vehicular traffic moving efficiently and safely. This is why threats to tunnels are of vast concern to the world economy, and why finding effective ways to mitigate these threats are a top priority for security experts. Simon Brimble and Ian Chaney are two such experts.

Simon Brimble is Arup’s associate director of resilience, security and risk. Arup (www.arup.com) is a consulting firm serving clients who operate tunnels, and designers/contractors who are bidding to build a tunnel. In each case, the company identifies potential threats to tunnel security using a threat and risk assessment process. With this data in hand, Arup then develops a security strategy, including physical, electronic and operational requirements to mitigate the identified threats, which are implemented through the design process.

Ian Chaney

Ian Chaney is WSP’s national business line director of geotechnical and tunneling. WSP (www.wsp.com) provides design and engineering services to clients globally for all forms of infrastructure, including tunnels. The company develops des–igns for roadway and transportation tunnel systems that enhance users’ safety and provide protection against potential terrorism, fire and other in-tunnel incidents. WSP also provides integrated electrical and SCADA designs to allow operators flexibility and visibility into their tunnel operations.

TSI brought both of these experts together for a virtual roundtable on this topic. Here is what they told us:

TSI: What are the major threats confronting tunnel security, and how serious are they?

Chaney: Terrorism, fire and flooding, along with cybersecurity breaches of tunnel traffic and control systems, are the major threats facing tunnel security today.

The primary threat that the industry is worried about is that of an explosive, whether it is someone taking an explosive onto a subway train or into a tunnel through a car.

Fires in tunnels are common, including car fires. In all cases, the main concern is getting passengers safely out of the tunnel. This is why all modern tunnels typically have dedicated egress pathways. If there is a major event within a tunnel, the passengers can exit their cars, get into an emergency pathway that is pressurized so it won’t have smoke or heat that escapes into it, allowing people to escape.

Flooding is typically from tidal events. If you have tunnels in coastal areas and tidal surge pushes water over the design flood elevation, that water just escapes into the tunnel. There was a major tunnel flood during Hurricane Sandy in New York, there was also one in Virginia in the early-2000s, both caused by tidal surge.

Those are the primary physical threats. Obviously, the cyber security threat is always there as well, where hackers can essentially hijack the traffic control systems within the tunnel.

TSI: Are theft and public safety also tunnel security issues?

Simon Brimble

Brimble: Yes. Bear in mind that tunnel types can range from a short 200m road tunnel through to a significant underground river crossing ­— and they can be used by pedestrians, vehicles or trains. They can also be used to provide utility/infrastructure links between two points, which are largely empty for most of the time.

When it comes to security issues, a tunnel serving utilities where powerlines are delivered underground is most likely to suffer from criminal attacks — either theft of the copper wiring which delivers power or from a malicious organization looking to disrupt power supply to a community.

For a railway tunnel, with the potential for children playing near live rail or its use as a potential evacuation route from a train, security must focus on safety. A transport tunnel is harder to regulate due to the variety of vehicles that may use it; a tunnel transporting passenger vehicles will have a very different demographic from an underground tunnel which the public use to cross a road, and the related risks will be similarly varied. Potential security risks can range from damage from terrorist attacks through to environmental protestors blocking access or thoroughfare.

TSI: So how can tunnel designers and operators mitigate these threats, both through new tunnel design and the rehabilitation of existing tunnels??

Brimble: It all starts with planning before anything happens. To really mitigate risk, the development of security plans against real operations is key.

At Arup, we look at the control room operations as well as the teams that run them. We consider the design of the room and the different tasks required to be undertaken by the operators to maintain safety and security during ongoing and security event. We also provide technical plans that can ensure the room and staff are not overloaded under different operating scenarios. We achieve this by bringing together a multi-disciplinary team which can bring different perspectives ­— from ergonomics and human factors to spatial design — into one cohesive response.

With transport and rail tunnels it is very difficult to predict the potential attack mechanisms so a security plan would comprise of careful thinking around the risk of these threats occurring and mapping the potential operational disruption. At times, these types of identified threats are simply not mitigatable and instead, the risk would be entered into the risk register for the operational team to manage as part of their day-to-day security process.

Tunnel

TSI: Now let’s look at the tunnel threats you have outlined, in terms of what can be done to deal with them. When it comes to terrorist bombs, for instance, can tunnels be hardened to survive such blasts?

Chaney: Yes. Tunnels nowadays can be designed to withstand a blast.
We look at tunnels that transport vehicles, that can be threatened by a car or truck filled with explosives, and we design their connections and segments accordingly. For subway tunnels, we look at a backpack bomb being brought in and what it could do to a tunnel, and we design against it.

TSI: What about fire?

Chaney: The most common way to protect tunnels against fire is by using modern forced ventilation, various fire-proofing products and sprinkler systems. If it is a tunnel that has enough space inside it, we construct these structures inside and then mask them with an interior liner on the tunnel.

Beyond that, the tunnel structure is typically protected with sprinkler systems and fire protection board that goes over the concrete. We don’t want the concrete to get to a temperature that will cause spalling or structural issues. So, we install fire protection board to help with that.

TSI: And flooding?

Chaney: When it comes to flooding, the best way to protect against it is to prevent it from happening in the first place. To do this, we raise the portals and provide walls around the tunnel’s other openings to keep water out even in extreme circumstances. So, if the flood elevation for a hundred-year storm is the existing ground elevation plus 10 feet, we make sure that the grading and the walls around the tunnel are built to, say, elevation plus 13 feet. In this way, no storm or surge that we’ve ever seen before can flood a tunnel.

Beyond that, what we can also do is to provide floodgates at the tunnel entrances and exits. So, if those elevations that I mentioned end up being overwhelmed, the tunnel operator can close the gates prior to a flood occurring. Everything outside the tunnel may be flooded, but the tunnel itself will still stay dry until the floodwaters recede.

TSI: What about deterring theft?

Brimble: To mitigate criminal activity, we would look at how to protect access points into the tunnels. This entails developing a strategy that hardens publicly accessible points, in conjunction with a known response time from capable guardians such as the police or security team, that can work to stop the act taking place.

Using a “deter, detect, delay and detain” approach is key. For example, a physical perimeter barrier such as a fence will deter some people. Electronic detection systems can show when a criminal act is happening or about to happen. And hardened access points can delay the success of the act by the perpetrators until a response can be mobilized by either the police or other organization.

Such an “onion skin” approach, where the protected item (e.g., power cables) has many layers of mitigation around it, is the basis of the tunnel’s security resilience. All these mechanisms must be matched to the day-to-day operations of a tunnel so that processes required to uphold the security are not dropped or reduced once in operation.

TSI: And then there’s cyber threats, including the risk of hackers taking over a tunnel’s IT systems and creating traffic chaos or worse. How do you deal with this?

Brimble: Both existing and new tunnel control facilities need to be assessed against current cyber threat and new systems need to be mitigated for against new threats.

Thankfully, more and more organizations are considering getting ahead of a threat rather than simply mitigating. Information or data gleaned from channels such as social media and other online sources can be used to establish any upcoming threats, which can then be specifically planned around or blocked by a security team.

Although cybersecurity is a key area in boosting resilience, doing so in older systems is a challenge. The onus on operators and maintainers to ensure systems are kept up to date is a continuous challenge, particularly where system OEMs did not consider cyber security at earlier stages of design.

TSI: What threats have yet to be fully addressed in tunnel security, and what is being done to address them?

Brimble: Drone attacks are an underestimated area, largely because it is difficult to predict and mitigate against.

With innovation and developments in related areas, tunnels with new functions and user demographics will bring new challenges in security — for example, freight tunnels are likely to be used by unmanned and remotely driven vehicles soon, which will highlight new and very different risks.

TSI: All told, is it realistically possible to fully protect tunnels from attacks, or is it a case of doing the best that can be done?

Chaney: As tunnels typically allow for public use, they cannot be completely protected against attacks. However, mitigation measures can be imparted such that security threats will not render a tunnel facility useless after an attack, but rather allow it to return to full service after a short amount of time and allow it to retain some amount of limited service during and after a security event.

Brimble: I don’t believe it is possible to fully protect a tunnel from attacks. This is why at Arup we adopt a risk-based approach that allows us to identify all of them and then implement a management plan which covers all bases as much as possible. Some risks are simply not mitigatable; for example, protest groups are dynamic and unpredictable, while terrorist threat defence requires the intelligence community to constantly share data that is up to date and timely. These are very complex environments.

As well, even the best of security plans are not infallible. If a strategy relies on electronic or physical systems that are then not reflected in the operational plan or simply not implemented by the daily security team, that is a shortcoming which will directly impact the security of the tunnel.

TSI: All this being said, are tunnels more secure than people commonly imagine them to be?

Chaney: I think tunnels are extremely secure.
For instance, a lot of people are afraid of getting trapped in a tunnel or having a tunnel flood quickly from waters above it. Those are Hollywood-type scenarios. A lot of tunnels have egress passageways that are dedicated to get people out of a tunnel in the emergency, and the probability of having a tunnel flood while someone is in it is almost basically none.

Boost Security, NOT COSTS

Boost Security, NOT COSTS

There is no doubt that new access/surveillance technology and advanced security monitoring solutions can improve security everywhere from airports and bus stations to mass transit, trucking and trains. At the same time, it is possible to improve security at any location without increasing costs. Here’s how to do it.

Adapt Your Security SOPs to Reality

All major transportation facilities have some sort of security infrastructures in place, along with Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to direct staff on how to manage and maintain these facilities.

In theory, all the staff have to do is to follow these SOPs to keep their facilities secure. In practice, however, this often doesn’t happen. One major reason: “A lot of the time when you find that staff [are] not following correct SOPs, [it] may be an indication that the SOPs are wrong,” said Shannon Wandmaker, director of Cain Wandmaker Aviation Security Consulting (cainwandmaker.com). “Obviously it can be an indication of other things as well — poor training, low staff morale, challenging work environment — but along with looking at those factors, security managers should remember to review the SOPs themselves, and to discuss the SOPs with the staff who are implementing them.”

Shannon Wandmaker
Shannon Wandmaker

Often the fixes being used by staff achieve the intent of the SOPs, even if they don’t follow them. This disconnect can occur because SOPs are often developed using a top-down approach, Wandmaker noted. “The national requirements say we need to do X, so our security manual says to do X, so the SOPs says, ‘this is how to do X.’ However, if the front-line staff are doing Y, and that achieves the same security outcome and meets the national requirements, then let them continue doing Y, and change the SOPs.”

Rebecca Sherouse
Rebecca Sherouse

Working with security ‘workarounds’ that work achieves two goals. First, “it means the company doesn’t have to waste time and money re-training people to do something a different way for no reason,” said Wandmaker. Second, adopting staff-developed SOPs “also gives front-line staff an opportunity to be heard, and feel that they have contributed to the outcome, and that has the side benefit of improving staff morale and engagement. People are more likely to follow an SOP that they helped write, than follow one that was imposed on them.”

The HiveWatch GSOC Operating System is a cloud-based security fusion platform that works with existing security systems to empower global security operations center workers. The system, built for physical security teams, simplifies information gathering from numerous security systems using multi-sensor resolution and machine learning, the company says. HiveWatch images.
The HiveWatch GSOC Operating System is a cloud-based security fusion platform that works with existing security systems to empower global security operations center workers. The system, built for physical security teams, simplifies information gathering from numerous security systems using multi-sensor resolution and machine learning, the company says. HiveWatch images.

Global View

Turn Down the Noise

Remember the old fable of The Boy Who Called Wolf? In this tale, a boy shepherd enjoys riling up his neighbors by calling ‘Wolf!’ when there isn’t one. After a while, his fed-up neighbors stopped heeding his calls, even when an actual wolf attacked the flock and ate them — and in some versions of the story, the shepherd as well.

This same scenario plays out today in transportation security. “Most transportation security hubs — such as airports, mass transit and ports — have global security operations centers (GSOCs) that provide security oversight for these locations,” explained Rebecca Sherouse, director of account management and security advisory at HiveWatch (hivewatch.com, a cloud-based SaaS platform built for physical security teams). “But almost all of these are plagued with “noise” — that is, false incoming alarms that detract from actual events that are occurring. As a result, GSOC operators are overwhelmed and become desensitized to incoming alerts, which can result in missed events and/or emergencies across the transportation sector.”

The solution to this problem? Reduce the number of false alarms due to proper equipment maintenance, a resetting of triggering thresholds so that alarms aren’t being set off by animals and natural phenomena, and any other adjustments that make sense. If security staff know that they can generally trust the alarm messages that they are receiving, they will be far more likely to respond to them.

A further way to cut down the noise is to modify GSOC operations to provide security staff with an integrated view of what’s going on across all of their facilities, so that they can make rational and timely security responses without drowning in data.

Frederick Reitz
Frederick Reitz

Here’s the problem: “There are a lot of devices deployed across the transportation sector, from access control points with varying levels of access, to video surveillance across the entire facility/geographic area, to video management systems, to fire and intrusion detection points, and much more,” Sherouse said. Without some sort of integration platform in place to organize and prioritize this information. “The wealth of data coming out of these various devices and systems can quickly overwhelm physical security operators, who often have to navigate to multiple locations within a GSOC to correlate data, video and other information when conducting an investigation or responding to an alert,” she told TSI. “The biggest lapse for this industry is the inability to correlate all of the incoming data into a cohesive view for an operator designed to streamline response and provide the most accurate and up-to-date information that’s needed to facilitate decision-making.”

Cutting down on the noise while making security jobs more decision-oriented and less a case of passively watching monitors can also lead to more consistent GSOC staffing, expertise and performance. This is because “GSOC operators traditionally have a high rate of turnover because of the largely repetitive nature of the job,” said Sherouse. “Incoming alarms can exacerbate this by becoming a hindrance to response in many situations. This can lead to lower morale and high turnover, which can in turn lead to insufficient training to deal with emergencies as they happen. That’s the last thing that an organization wants when an incident arises — especially in such a critical sector.”

Replace Humans at Access Points with Machines

It is possible to buy new technology and improve security without increasing costs, once the money being saved by the technology’s operations is factored into the equation.

A case in point: “One of the major lapses that exists in transportation security is management of exit lanes and employee access lanes,” said Frederick Reitz, managing director of the aviation security firm SAFEsky. “Most airports have an exit area that must be manned by a security guard or TSA agent (in the U.S.). The standard cost for putting a security guard or TSA agent at an exit lane for 12 months averages approximately $250,000.”

Now, it would cost about $500,000 to replace that one guard with four exit lanes controlled by one automated terminal, he said. But do the math: “The investment of the automated secure exit lanes would pay for itself in two years,” said Reitz. After that, the money saved by not having a human guard would be a bonus.

That’s not all. “Automated lanes are an effective way to prevent access to the secured area,” he said. “They are always watching, and do not open if a person tries to enter from the wrong direction.” In contrast, a human guard requires breaks for meals and restroom use, and their attention can be diverted by passengers asking questions or a staged incident meant to distract them.

Training and Morale Matters

One reason why it is possible to improve security without raising costs is because humans operate security systems — and the training of these humans can be improved by simply executing existing training and morale support programs better. “Regardless of the quality of equipment in place, the quality of the people using that equipment will always be the determining factor on how well the equipment works,” observed Wandmaker. “A one million dollar piece of equipment, operated by someone who has had $1 of training, is worth $1.”

As for the fond hope that advanced technology can compensate for poor operator training and, by extension, poor management by those in charge of such operators? Don’t kid yourself: “No one puts a pilot with half an hour of training in charge of a brand new Airbus A350, no matter how technologically advanced the autopilot is,” Wandmaker said. “Similarly, if you want to get the best performance out of your security equipment, then you need to give the people using that equipment the best possible training and ongoing support.”

It’s ongoing support that organizations will often forget, he warned. Successful staff training does not mean delivering a course once and then never again. Instead, “it’s about initial training, refresher training, support and mentoring, creating career pathways (that include appropriate additional training for supervisors, managers, specializations), and a host of other things,” said Wandmaker. Ongoing support not only ensures staff skills don’t fade over time due to training neglect, but “that they feel like a valued part of the organization, and that their role is not just ‘a job’, but could be an actual career path for them if they wanted it.”

In saying this, Shannon Wandmaker acknowledged that every organization will have limitations in what they can deliver in terms of ongoing support for their staff, based on their size and revenue. “A large multinational manned guarding company will have far more scope to deliver ongoing training, mentoring and career pathways than a small transport and logistics company with three security officers on its books,” he said. “But it’s about doing what you can within each organization’s own reasonable financial and other limits.”

Frederick Reitz is another big believer in ongoing training and support. But he thinks its reach has to be extended to everyone in the organization whose job has an impact on facility security, not just the people manning the desks at the GSOC.

“To prevent lapses in security, it is important that airports and airlines conduct annual security training, through online training modules or in-person classes, to remind staff of the security procedures,” he said. After all, “airline and airport staff are a part of the security process, they are the eyes and ears of the security system. They need to be observant and watch for suspicious activity and unusual events at the airport, on the plane.” According to Reitz, training should include a reminder of facility security procedures, and access control regulations for staff on duty and off duty. Training should include current threat information and a reminder for staff to be aware of their surroundings.

Preventing a Return to Bad Habits

All of the ideas noted above can help improve facility security without boosting costs. But all of the effort required to implement them won’t be worthwhile if staff are allowed to slip back into bad habits six months down the road. This is why security managers have to be vigilant in maintaining the improvements they have made to date, and watchful for new ideas to implement going forward. “In an industry that is constantly addressing new and emerging threats — and taking action to determine the best way to address them — continuously updating response protocols and incorporating them into training of GSOC operators remains critical,” said Sherouse.

“Quality assurance and oversight: It doesn’t matter whether it’s a private organization or a State regulator, around the world one of the biggest areas where organizations let themselves down is quality assurance and oversight,” Wandmaker said. “Organizations put policies, rules, SOPs, guidance material in place, train their staff on it, and then fail to conduct effective QA. And then they wonder why their security outcomes are poor. Effective QA pays for itself, because in addition to identifying poor security outcomes and ensuring they’re corrected, it also allows organizations to review security settings on a regular basis to identify inefficiencies in systems. Good security has a layered approach, but great security ensures only the effective layers are kept.”

Taking the time to maintain security procedures, training, and staff morale is central to keeping bad habits at bay. “Lapses in security occur when we are in a hurry,” said Reitz.

Two examples prove his point. In the first, “as an airline security manager, I was called to the security checkpoint when a flight attendant, rushing for a flight after a layover, forgot she had a knife in her lunch bag,” Reitz said. “Initially, TSA wanted the flight attendant charged with introducing a prohibited item into the secure area. Fortunately, after investigating the circumstances, she was allowed to continue her flight — without her lunch bag.”

In the second instance, “an airport agent wanted to go to the gate and say goodbye to a friend, and used the employee entrance to the secure area,” he said. “This also could have resulted in a one-year suspension of the employee’s airport ID. [But] reasonable heads prevailed and a five-day suspension was given. Security training needs to include examples of these events to remind employees that procedures are in place for a reason, and that rushing often leads us to forgetting the importance of a procedure.”

Three Final Fixes

To conclude this article, the three security experts we interviewed were asked for three final security fixes.

Rebecca Sherouse recommended using “technology to identify and reduce false alarms that take valuable time away from security operators to respond to real emergency situations.”

Shannon Wandmaker said that transportation facilities need to review their security risk contexts statement (or create one, if they don’t already have one), and re-conduct their risk assessments to keep them relevant and useful. “What has changed? Are the threats the same as they were one year ago? Five years ago?” he said. “Are we defending against threats that don’t exist anymore, but not defending against emerging threats? For example, an organization may have previously been concerned about the impact of civil unrest in their country and how that could impact on their supply chains. However, the political situation has stabilized, but the company hasn’t removed the additional security measures. At the same time, they have missed the emergency of cyber security threats, and are grossly under-defended against this much more possible attack.”

Frederick Reitz offered a different view. “The single least expensive way to improve security is to keep staff involved,” he said. To make this happen, “security managers can provide newsletters, bulletins and briefings. Gathering the staff occasionally to have a security briefing not only keeps the importance of security in front of the staff but opens the doors for communication and gives them the opportunity to provide input.”

The bottom line: As this story shows, it is possible to improve security without increasing costs — right here and right now.

Security, Facilitation, Disability, Discrimination: What Happens When Security and Disability Collide

Security, Facilitation, Disability, Discrimination: What Happens When Security and Disability Collide

One Friday afternoon a man passed through Adelaide airport on his way home after a business trip. The man, who was blind from birth, was traveling with his guide dog.

At the airport security screening point — it is alleged — the man was rudely refused access to the body scanner, and was told to proceed through the walk-through metal detector, with his guide dog put through separately. He was then asked to submit to a pat-down search, though a colleague traveling with him questioned why it was required, as only his dog’s metal harness had triggered the alarm. A screening supervisor who was called over after the fact later agreed that only the dog needed the pat-down search.

The man stated later to the media that he felt humiliated and distressed by not being allowed to proceed through the body scanner and by his subsequent treatment, though by his own account he acknowledged it wasn’t the worst discrimination he’d ever faced.

However, it was, he noted, part of a pattern of discrimination he’d faced time and again when traveling through airport security screening points, which had included being physically pushed back through a body scanner by a screening officer and being on the receiving end of multiple disrespectful and negative comments.

Adelaide airport apologized for the incident. It was not in keeping with their expected high standards of customer service. Indeed, as they pointed out, the airport has a range of policies and programs in place to assist people with disabilities, including having a Guide Dogs trained dog based at the terminal to support travelers who needed extra assistance navigating the terminal.

The problem for Adelaide airport was that the businessman was Graeme Innes, the former Australian disability discrimination commissioner, former Australian human rights commissioner, and a member of the Order of Australia. He knew a thing or two about discrimination.

The problem for Mr. Innes was that the screening officers did nothing wrong. Apart from perhaps displaying less than optimal customer service skills, they were adhering to their standard operating procedures, which in turn had been derived from the legal requirements for screening in Australia.

And so, in a situation where the airport has systems in place to do the right thing, the screening officers involved were doing the right thing, and the passenger themselves was well traveled and well informed, how could it go so wrong, and why does it go so wrong so often?

The intersection between aviation security and facilitation is always a challenging one, and the balance between the smooth flow of passengers and the delivery of aviation security outcomes can be hard to achieve even when facilitating the movement of ‘able-bodied’ passengers from curbside to the aircraft.

So, what happens when passengers with disabilities (physical, psychological, obvious and hidden) arrive in this space?

There are no shortages of examples around the world of people with disabilities receiving less than optimal service at screening points. The inappropriate handling of passengers in wheelchairs, separation of people from their assistance animals, and subjecting people with sensory issues to physical searches being among the more commonly raised complaints.

Given around 20 percent of people have some form of disability, and given the often minimal training security screeners are given regarding the facilitation of passengers with a disability, what can screening providers and airports do to better meet the needs of this substantial slice of the traveling public?

Screening points are, at their core, not designed to accommodate difference, but are designed based on the somewhat shaky assumption that, give or take some height and weight differences, everyone who turns up at a screening point is basically the same, understands what is required of them, can prepare themselves unaided, and can ambulate unassisted through the screening process.

For the 45-year-old CEO who flies eight times a month, this is correct. But what about the retired 75-year-old who has never flown before? Even as an ‘abled-bodied’ passenger, his ability to navigate the screening process as an inexperienced passenger is not the same as the CEO.

Add in some other people: a father traveling with two young children, a tourist who doesn’t speak the language, a person traveling with the cremated remains of a loved one, a group of semi-intoxicated people on a rugby trip. All of these people present differently at a screening point, will have vastly different understandings of what is required of them, and vastly different capacities to comply.

Now, let’s mix in ‘obvious’ disabilities such as deafness or blindness, and people using wheelchairs or mobility aids who need additional time or help through the process. This adds an additional layer of complexity.

But we also need to consider that of the estimated 20 percent of travelers who have some form of disability, between 80 to 90 percent of them will have what is considered an invisible or hidden disability. This will include, amongst others, multiple sclerosis, autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, arthritis, brain injuries, bleeding disorders, mental illnesses, respiratory conditions, speech impairments, diabetes, epilepsy, anxiety, cognitive and learning disabilities, chronic pain, and fatigue.

It turns out people who turn up at screening points really aren’t the same at all.

On the screener side, then, there must be some sympathy.

The expectation that a screening officer, whose primary role is to ensure no threat to security makes it to the aircraft, is also going to have an encyclopaedic knowledge of every disability they may encounter, is unrealistic at best.

In addition, screeners also spend much of their poorly paid shift getting yelled at by people who didn’t know they can’t take a full water bottle through the screening point because the rule has only been in place for 15 years.

It’s probably also busy, and noisy, and the screening point is cramped, and three screeners are off sick, and staff turnover is 35 percent a year so most of the screeners are new.

And while there are some screening organizations that prioritize customer service and the passenger experience, the vast majority of screeners are focused on their primary task — protecting the aircraft from threats — and the customer experience is a secondary consideration.

Any wonder that occasionally a screener’s interpersonal and engagement skills with a person with a disability might not be the same as a Singapore Airlines first class cabin manager.

So, What’s the Solution?

While answers may come from a variety of sources, three key areas will be training, passenger differentiation and technology.

While better training of security staff is important, it’s unreasonable to expect screening officers to know every disability and how to address them. However, there are schemes in place in airports around the world that seek to give the airport community — not just the screeners — simple tools that help staff and a passenger with a disability to interact with each other in a more compassionate and understanding way.

The Hidden Disabilities Sunflower scheme, that finds its roots at Gatwick Airport and is now seen at airports and other transport hubs around the world, is a good example where, by displaying a small sunflower badge, passengers can discreetly indicate they have an invisible disability and may need some support, assistance or simply a little more time when moving through the airport.

The badge forewarns airport staff, and basic training gives them the skills to engage in an appropriate manner.

Having already identified that not everyone who presents at a screening point is the same, the next natural step is to differentiate people in sensible ways.

The simplest first step — space and resources permitting — is the implementation of a dedicated lane for people who need more time. This can include parents with prams, the elderly, people with mobility issues, blind or hearing-impaired people, or people who choose to self-select as needing more assistance.

Taking these people out of the main flow of screening has the dual effect of making other screening lanes more efficient, while at the same time taking pressure off those people who need more time so they don’t feel like they’re holding up the queue.

In addition, further passenger differentiation can be achieved using either real-time or advanced data techniques.

Real-time behavior-based differentiation, which involves a behavior detection officer differentiating passengers before screening, or technology-based differentiation such as automated behavior detection technologies and automated questioning at check-in kiosks, allows passengers considered to be higher risk to be identified and subjected to additional screening.

These techniques could also incorporate an element that would allow people to either self-select as needing assistance (in the case of check-in kiosks), or allow a behavior detection officer or other queue comber to direct people with disabilities to the appropriate screening lane.

Registered or trusted traveler programs such as the TSA Pre-Check system, in which a passenger provides data in advance that allows them to access expedited screening, could also incorporate disability information to give people access to a dedicated screening lane.

Technology will be part of the solution too, but it can be a double-edged sword.

In the Adelaide example, the implementation of body scanners has created categories of passengers who are excluded from their use. This has happened before. People with pacemakers are unable to use a walk-through metal detector, and people with prosthetic limbs almost always find themselves subject to a secondary search, for example.

In addition, most facilitation technology being implemented at airports is focused on removing face-to-face interaction. Online check-in, automatic baggage drop, passport e-gates and the introduction of new screening technology is all well and good for the seasoned traveler, but the opposite of what a person with a disability might require.

Disabled Passenger

The opportunity to tell an actual person, “I need a little more time, I’m having difficulty navigating this process, I’m becoming overwhelmed,” is not built into an automated system.

Seamless travel, automation and digitization can also isolate the elderly, people with learning challenges, and people from lower socio-economic backgrounds who have challenges accessing and interpreting technology.

Being able to go from curbside to aircraft without interacting with anyone is efficient if you’re willing, able, and know what you’re doing, but terrible if you need additional assistance.

If increased automation allows people to pass through the airport more smoothly and at a faster rate, it must also free up airport, airline, screening and immigration staff to be available to provide additional assistance to those who need it. More automation used as a tool to reduce staff numbers and human resource costs is not a recipe for better disability facilitation.

Unfortunately, in the short- to medium-term the situation will likely get worse before it gets better.

In the post-COVID aviation environment, staff shortages are resulting in significantly fewer staff, long queues, frustrated and angry passengers (and staff), and an overall less pleasant airport environment. Furthermore, those staff who are at work are generally newer and less experienced than those staff who were on-the-job pre-COVID. It will take years for staff numbers, and staff experience, to return.

In addition, as the aviation industry recovers from its unprecedented financial losses, investing in new technology is unlikely to be a priority in the near-term.

However, there is light at the end of the tunnel as, long term, accessibility continues to be an industry focus.

In August 2022, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) elevated from a recommendation to a standard the requirement that States ensure persons with disabilities receive the same services customarily available to the general public, and in September, Airports Council International (ACI) launched its Accessibility Enhancement Accreditation Program, the first global program dedicated to enhancing the accessibility of airports for passengers with disabilities.

Given that around 20 percent of passengers travel with a disability, it is incumbent upon industry to be responsive to the needs of this significant slice of the customer base.

As former Disability Discrimination Commissioner Mr Innes noted after his experience, “I do not want a separate system. (I) want this one to treat us equally.”

That seems like a reasonable request.

Lead Editorial

Spy Balloon, Train Derailment

In late January a large, Chinese balloon entered into United States airspace over Alaska. U.S. officials first detected the balloon with a large dangling payload on January 28 when it entered U.S. airspace near the Aleutian Islands and then over several days into February the balloon drifted (or was directed) over parts of Canada and then over the continental U.S. The balloon traversed Alaska, Canada and re-entered U.S. airspace over Idaho.

Equipment dangled from the balloon, including solar panels that could power its propulsion, cameras and surveillance equipment. The balloon itself was 200 feet tall, according to Gen. Glen D. Vanherck, commander of U.S. Northern Command and North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD), with a payload that weighed “a couple of thousand pounds.” Decisions were made to not take the balloon down while it was over land as it drifted so as to mitigate the potential of the debris falling and possibly injuring people or objects on the ground.

But the Department of Defense said that long before the shoot down, steps to protect against the balloon’s collection of sensitive information were taken, mitigating its intelligence value to the Chinese. The senior defense official said the recovery of the balloon will enable U.S. analysts to examine sensitive Chinese equipment.

“I would also note that while we took all necessary steps to protect against the PRC surveillance balloon’s collection of sensitive information, the surveillance balloon’s overflight of U.S. territory was of intelligence value to us,” an official said. “I can’t go into more detail, but we were able to study and scrutinize the balloon and its equipment, which has been valuable.”

Eventually, about a week after it was first sighted, a U.S. Air Force fighter shot it down, over water off the coast of South Carolina. “The balloon, which was being used by the PRC in an attempt to surveil strategic sites in the continental United States, was brought down above U.S. territorial waters,” Austin said.

The U.S. Department of Defense called the incident “an unacceptable violation of U.S. sovereignty.”

Meanwhile in Ohio, a train derailment, also in early February, caused much ado in the U.S. On the evening of February 3, a train with about 150 cars that was carrying chemicals derailed in East Palestine, Ohio. About 38 of the cars derailed, reports say, and another dozen were damaged. A fire erupted from the wreckage and filled the small town with smoke — and fear — and rightly so. The chemicals turned out to be toxic.

Even though authorities evacuated an area and carried out a controlled release of the fumes from the chemicals, the entire process seems to have been handled poorly. On February 6, toxic material from five tanker cars was released and diverted to a trench to be burned off.

Authorities repeatedly said there was nothing to worry about, but residents began experiencing health issues and reports of fish kill in local waters surfaced. The chemicals on the train cars included vinyl chloride, butyl acrylate, ethylhexyl acrylate and ethylene glycol monobutyl ethers. A few days later, around 3,500 fish had been determined to have been killed in the nearby streams and river.

Additionally, two weeks after the event, local residents were advised to use bottled water, prompting residents to lose trust in the officials handling the event and many felt that no one communicated the scale of the event or impact to public health to them. People complained of headaches, rashes, irritation of the throat and a lingering chemical odor in the air.

The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating and that investigation is ongoing. Future investigative activity will focus on the wheelset and bearing; tank car design and derailment damage; a review of the accident response, including the venting and burning of the vinyl chloride; railcar design and maintenance procedures and practices, the agency says.

Now to the issue at hand: please enjoy this latest edition of TSI as we delve into some fascinating topics. Our cover story looks at flight attendant training in the face of the uptick in unruly passengers during the past several years. Was this a crisis due to the pandemic? Or was it already happening? How are airlines responding? What options for security and self-defense training exist outside of the standard initial courses at the airlines? Find out on page 14 in our look at these resources for frontline workers whose main job is safety and security of the flight.

Body scanning has made rapid advancements to get to where it is today. We spoke to the leading players to see how far they have come in developing this key security technology. “Through a Scanner Darkly” begins on page 20.

Next, we explore the futuristic use of artificial intelligence (AI) in security. It is something we are hearing about daily with AI chatbots like Open AI’s chatGPT and Google’s Bard coming into use now. AI is finding its way into all aspects of life ­— how will it impact security? Learn more starting on page 26.

We also peer into tunnel security. What do the experts say are the biggest concerns and how to mitigate them starting? Find out on page 28.

Finally, our last feature should appeal to everyone — “Boost Security, Not Cost”. This looks at how entities can improve their vigilance and security without spending money.

Also, please don’t miss the column from Shannon Wandmaker about the intersection of security and disability — a complex issue with no easy answers. That column starts on page 40.
Happy spring to all.

VIRTUAL INTERLINING MAKING SENSE OF PASSENGER DATA HANDLING

VIRTUAL INTERLINING MAKING SENSE OF PASSENGER DATA HANDLING

The airline landscape has grown increasingly diverse and sophisticated in the last few years.

The neat divide between the full service legacy carriers, that offer connection flights, and the much simpler, point to point operations embraced by the first generation of low cost airlines is getting increasingly blurred as business models hybridize.

Interline agreements have long been a staple of the air travel industry. Basically, airlines partner with one another to offer passengers a seamless journey across their respective networks, from point A to B through some intermediate transit point.

This type of collaboration traditionally took place within an established formal framework, such as those represented by the three major airline alliances or the myriad of bilateral agreements that exist between carriers, but there has always been a segment of travelers ready to self-connect, at their own cost and risk, whenever conditions are right.

Interline agreements are when airlines partner with one another to offer passengers a seamless journey across their respective networks.
Interline agreements are when airlines partner with one another to offer passengers a seamless journey across their respective networks.

That is, if fares are low enough, many will put up with the inconvenience of having to go through the whole airport sequence more than once. Self-connecting requires collecting your bags upon arrival at the transit airport, checking them in again and often enduring extra queues and security controls, not to mention the chances of getting stranded along the way if one of the flights in the itinerary gets cancelled or delayed.

Airsiders’ end-to-end solutions align with existing airline processes, ground handling operations, local customs requirements and require no IT changes for the carriers, the company says. Airsiders image.
Airsiders’ end-to-end solutions align with existing airline processes, ground handling operations, local customs requirements and require no IT changes for the carriers, the company says. Airsiders image.

Online aggregators and OTAs such as Kiwi.com took notice and, about a decade ago started catering to this, apparently underserved, market by showing in their search results itineraries combining flights from multiple low cost and non-aligned airlines that before that could only be booked separately. In fact, even if Kiwi lets you book them in one go, as far as the airlines are concerned, these itineraries would still be made of two separate bookings.

What aggregators bring to the table is visibility, showing you all the different options in one place, and the ease of use of being able to book them all through one single interface. Some of them also issue a guarantee that, in case one of the connections is missed, they will take care of you, so that you don’t find yourself stranded.

Besides the operators that, like Kiwi, are known for their B2C focus, a whole crop of technology companies emerged to target primarily the B2B market, helping airlines, airports and other travel operators link the dots without the need to embrace the legacy interlining framework and its complexities.

Firms such as Air Black Box, Dohop, Airsiders and Tripstack have all been developing software platforms to propel this type of “alternative” connectivity that has come to be commonly known as “virtual interlining”.

But how do these firms combine trips booked on multiple stand-alone airlines? And what are the implications for passenger data management and the transfer of personal information to all the relevant parties, including air operators and government agencies?

Tradition and Innovation

First of all, let’s have a look at what happens with traditional interlining.

Most traditional interlining takes place within IATA frameworks, such as the Multilateral Interline Traffic Agreement (MITA), which establishes a whole set of rules and parameters for inter-airline cooperation, from technology standards to the settlement of payments through IATA’s own International Clearing House (ICH).

This whole system relies on a rather old setup (the EDIFACT technology used for data transfers dates back from the 1980s!) and it can also be quite expensive as well, with multiple layers of fees and charges.

In return, those airlines that are already part of the system benefit from a well established mechanism capable of offering a rather seamless experience to the passenger.

Whenever you are looking for flights between two destinations, a simple search on an airline website or through a travel agent (online or offline) would send a query to the GDS or directly to the airline PSS (Passenger Service System).

These in turn will pull flight options from their own inventory or from schedule databases (like those collected by OAG and Cirium) as well as the related pricing information (most likely from ATPCO) in order to suggest possible itineraries (note, however, that the options on offer may not include all possible operators and flight combinations!).

Once the flight is booked, a single Passenger Name Record (PNR) and an e-Ticket is generated for the whole itinerary.

The PNR, whose identifier is the six-digit code that you receive when completing a booking, acts as a repository of information, not just for the operators involved in the different stages of the flight, but also for those governments and security agencies that require getting passenger information in advance.

Although a PNR can technically include hundreds of data points, the EU authorities require access to at least 19 data items pertaining to five different major categories: passenger data, flight details, payment status, boarding status and seat and baggage information. Access to these records helps authorities check the incoming passengers lists against their own law enforcement databases and flag any suspect passengers in advance.

In America, the Customs and Border Protection (CBP) has a similar requirement, also requesting airlines to submit PNR information in advance of any incoming flight to the U. S. (and since a 2011 agreement, the EU also shares PNR info with the U. S. authorities). The required passenger data is transmitted through a messaging standard called PNRGOV.

What happens, though, when a traveler’s booking is, in fact, a virtually interlined flight with several independent legs involved, each flown by a different carrier, but combined to create a unified itinerary?

“We create a super-PNR that identifies the whole journey from beginning to end, even if there are two or more airlines involved” explains Peer Winter, VP Commercial Business Development at Air Black Box, a firm, now part of the 777 Travel Tech group,

What systems such as Air Black Box do is create a sort of synthetic identifier showing the entire journey, what many in the industry call a “Super-PNR”, which makes it possible to orchestrate other products and services into the same record.

Peer Winter Air Black Box
Peer Winter
Air Black Box

This Super-PNR supplements the individual PNRs of each individual leg of the journey and the passenger and operators can use it to identify the itinerary as a whole.

Air Black Box adds information to a Super-PNR when it is of significance for its ThruBag process, a service that allows for baggage transfers in multi-airline itineraries.
Air Black Box adds information to a Super-PNR when it is of significance for its ThruBag process, a service that allows for baggage transfers in multi-airline itineraries.

However, this super-PNR exists for mere informational purposes.

In order to block inventory and for other practical and operational needs, each of the airlines involved keeps in its PSS the active booking for the specific leg of the trip it is responsible for, as well as the related PNR.

When the relevant authorities request that passenger data be submitted, each of the airlines would send the info that relates to the specific flight segment it is taking care of, just as it would on any other passenger, regardless of whether that traveler has interlined with another carrier on that trip.

Similarly, each airline is responsible to provide customer service during its leg of the trip only.

The aggregators, however, insert data into the super-PNR, so that administrators at all the airlines involved can see the relevant details for the whole journey.

For example, Air Black Box adds information to the Super-PNR when it is of significance for its ThruBag process, a service that allows for baggage transfers in multi-airline itineraries. In such cases, the added information is forwarded to the DCS system (Departure Control System) of the respective airlines, allowing them to print an interline bag tag.

It is also possible to use virtual interlining to connect carriers that do not have any agreement between them. In fact, an increasing number of airlines and airports are deploying this technology pro-actively, in order to open new commercial opportunities beyond the reach of its own network.

Norse Atlantic uses Dohop, an Icelandic tech firm, to streamline their virtual interlining partners. Norse Atlantic image.
Norse Atlantic uses Dohop, an Icelandic tech firm, to streamline their virtual interlining partners. Norse Atlantic image.

Easyjet and Norse Atlantic, for example, are two examples of low cost airlines that have assembled a small number of partners, most of them other LCCs with some degree of geographical complementarity, to feed their respective networks.

In both these cases, the virtual interlining “plumbing” has been the work of Dohop, an Icelandic tech firm that has carved for itself a relevant role in this market and has since also expanded into adjacent markets, such as air+rail connections (it services, for example, the connections between Easyjet and the German railway operator Deutsche Bahn).

Why is Virtual Interlining in Fashion?

Low cost airlines are, thus, deviating from what was long considered one of the core tenets of the LCC orthodoxy: avoiding the operational complexities of managing flight connections.

However, connecting flights are often unavoidable and here is where the new generation of interlining tech may have an important role to play. Airlines are outsourcing the complexity to those platforms in order to get additional revenues and optimized load factors in return.

“It is not just that traditional interlining uses old and clunky technology, it can also be quite costly compared to the API-based platforms of the virtual interliners. Payment settlements, for example, are really quick, whereas in the legacy system they can take weeks or months” explains Ann Cederhall, an airline distribution technology expert and consultant at LeapShift, a firm that advises companies in the travel industry.

Timothy O’Neil-Dunne T2Impact
Timothy O’Neil-Dunne
T2Impact

“IATA has been trying to fix interlining for ages but failed many times. Basically, because its vision is too restrictive. The demand for interlining of any type has increased because of the reduction (since the pandemic) of the number of nonstops,” thinks Timothy O’Neil-Dunne, who co-founded Air Black Box and is currently a principal at T2Impact, a consultancy firm providing advice to the aviation and travel industries.

Virtual interlining has become particularly interesting for the smaller, independent airlines. Why so?

While large legacy carriers can offer hundreds or thousands of destinations throughout the world, either on their own or through their alliances, airlines with small networks or limited geographical reach may be leaving crumbs on the table when hard-won traffic gets to their websites, but can’t find what they are looking for. AirAsia, for example, may sell you a ticket on another airline if they don’t fly the route you are looking for, even if there is no formal alliance of any sort with the carrier in question.

Solving the Baggage Problem

One of the major friction points that hasn’t been fully sorted, though, and makes virtual interlining a tough proposition for some segments of the market is baggage handling.

It may not be an insurmountable issue for a significant number of passengers, though. Business passengers, people travelling on their own…the introduction of basic, handbag-only fares by low cost carriers such as Wizz Air or Vueling, shows that many passengers can do not just without checked-in bags, but even without cabin ones.

With SITA’s 2022 Baggage IT Insights report, pointing to the fact that 40% of baggage handling incidents were connected to interlined journeys, perhaps it is not a bad idea for virtual interliners to stay away from this activity.

Despite the well-known shortcomings, baggage is one of the elements that traditional interlining is perfectly able to handle at scale and there is a well defined procedure that minimizes the number of touchpoints for the passenger. Many legacy airlines subscribe to a protocol called Inter-Airline Through Check-In (IATCI) that makes it possible for passengers and bags to be checked in only once, at the start of the journey, when on multi-airline itineraries. However, this is not the case for most low cost carriers.

If baggage-handling remains a hard nut to crack it is not for lack of want, though.

Both Air Black Box and Airsiders have been working on baggage handling solutions for interlined travelers, although these systems have seen a rather limited deployment so far.

Airsiders, for example, is marketing a bag transfer solution for which it expects to get a patent soon. Little public information is currently available about this system, but it is worth noting that Airsiders is linked to the Beumer Group, a large German manufacturer of ground handling equipment, so it is no stranger to the business of baggage handling.

Air Black Box, in turn, offers its own (previously mentioned) ThruBag solution, which it introduced in 2021 and is already being used by two small airlines in Africa, Lift and FlyNamibia.

Its implementation requires some compromises when it comes to the “virtuality” of the whole process, since in this case it is necessary to have some agreements in place, between the airlines involved as well as with the handling operators.

Operating an interlining system with bags on a truly global scale requires boots on the ground as well as the use of a unified PNR for the whole itinerary.

What’s Next?

The rise of virtual interlining hasn’t gone unnoticed.

IATA has got the memo and it is working on a new interlining framework of its own: the Standard Retailer and Supplier Interline Agreement (SRSIA), which is expected to be closely aligned with the OneOrder initiative.

Long in the making, One Order is a key IATA initiative that aims to move away from concepts such as “ticket” and “PNR” and move towards a new concept called “order”, something more akin to a shopping basket, which contains all the passenger’s trip transactional information.

Baggage-handling remains a hard nut to crack but both Air Black Box and Airsiders have been working on baggage handling solutions for interlined travelers.
Baggage-handling remains a hard nut to crack but both Air Black Box and Airsiders have been working on baggage handling solutions for interlined travelers.

The “order” will facilitate the addition of multiple services and ancillaries. Also, whereas PNRs are purged when the last trip activity is completed (and the PNR record locator is recycled), an order is not purged and allows users to retarget consumers based on past activity.

The ability to boost the airlines’ retailing capabilities is, thus, one of the major drivers behind this project, whose goal is to eventually replace the PNR entirely.

Ann Cederhall Travel Consultant
Ann Cederhall
Travel Consultant

“Think of the typical Amazon shopping basket to which you can easily add all sorts of products and services. At the moment, for example, you can interline, but it is difficult for airlines to sell ancillaries on each other’s flights” explains Ann Cederhall, using the analogy with the retailing giant.

In fact, on SRSIA, rather than talking about different types of carriers, the marketplace revolves around the concept of “retailer” and “supplier”, an appropriately ambiguous terminology that further blurs the distinction between who buys and sells what within the air transportation ecosystem.
But this is, perhaps, a topic for another day.

UPGRADING MARITIME CYBERSECURITY IN A DANGEROUS WORLD

UPGRADING MARITIME CYBERSECURITY IN A DANGEROUS WORLD

Three noteworthy numbers:

• According to Statista.com, total global trade was worth $22.3 trillion in 2021.

• According to the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), ships carried over 80% of the goods traded globally.

• 80% of $22.3 trillion is $17.84 trillion, so ships carried around $18 trillion in goods in 2021.

With trillions of dollars on the line, you would think that the world’s ships would be well-protected from cyber attacks. But you would be wrong. Thanks to antiquated IT systems, a general lack of proactive cyber defenses, and an absence of cybersecurity personnel onboard, most ships are easy targets for hackers extorting money through ransomware attacks, and hostile players wanting to wound specific nation’s economies by outright sabotage.

“Threat actors can easily disable or tamper with onboard and offboard systems,” said David Warshavski, vice president of Enterprise Security at the cyber technology and services company Sygnia. “While this may not seem critical to overall operations, it can effectively halt a ship from moving or delivering its cargo.”

Thankfully, there are steps that can be taken to bring maritime cybersecurity up to 21st century standards, and some maritime associations and shipping companies are already taking them. But others aren’t: “There are a lot of cyber deniers that are just saying, ‘Ah, this isn’t that big of a problem’,” said Gary Kessler, principal consultant in the Maritime Solutions Group at Fathom5, an industrial technology company delivering security-first solutions to the maritime industry. “Their frequent response is, ‘Has anybody sunk a ship yet with a cyberattack?’.”

Why Ships Are So Vulnerable to Cyber Attacks

When it comes to cyber attacks, “the maritime sector has unique vulnerabilities that are a consequence of its nature,” said Scott Blough, principal cyber security consultant at Mandiant, a global cybersecurity firm and Google subsidiary. For instance, “it is a worldwide industry, with 80% of all world trade touching a ship at some point in its journey,” said Ian Bramson, global head of Industrial Cybersecurity with ABS Group, which supports the safety and reliability of high-performance assets and operations. “With hackers increasingly looking to disrupt the supply chain to cause chaos and incur larger payouts, maritime operations are becoming increasingly compelling targets.”

“Furthermore, ships are rarely as segmented as traditional industrial environments,” Bramson added. “This means that attackers that gain access to one system can often move to other areas — like engine rooms or control systems — with relative ease. This lack of segmentation essentially means there are generally very few safeguards in place to stop a threat that has already breached perimeter security.”

David WarshavskiSygnia
David Warshavski
Sygnia

Two ways to add such safeguards is through constant vigilance by IT experts onboard ships, and regular software updates to patch security holes in their IT environments. But most vessels do not have IT people onboard (or even on shore), while many have outdated computers running their ship systems.

“It’s amazing how many shipboard systems are based upon older Windows kernels such as Windows 7 and Windows XP,” said Kessler. “You can’t totally secure these systems because we’re talking about operating system kernels that are no longer supported by Microsoft.”

As for patching those shipboard computers whose operating systems are still supported by their manufacturers? Unfortunately, the VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminal) satellite communication systems used by ships have limited bandwidth and high connection costs. These constraints make the transfer of large data files from shore to ships time-consuming and expensive, and thus impractical at sea. In other words, “pushing updates is not something that we want to be doing using VSATs,” said Kessler.

Meanwhile, when ships do get to port, installing cybersecurity updates can get pushed out of the way by other priorities. This results in those ships leaving port with their computers still vulnerable.

Then there’s the “huge population” of people who gain access to ships, Bramson told TSI. “Of particular note is the proliferation of third-party maintenance of ship systems as vendors come aboard to test and update systems at ports across the world,” he noted. “Even if these people have good intentions, each person brings a risk. It only takes one vendor accidentally using a malware-infected device to compromise the ship as a whole.”

Ships are Vulnerable

These problems aren’t the only ones hampering maritime cybersecurity. A case in point: Government initiatives such as the U. S. Cybersecurity & Infrastructure Security Agency’s Cybersecurity Performance Goals (which are voluntary) are trying to convince shipping companies to become fully responsible for their own cyber protection. Yet those who try to do so can see their efforts stymied by vendors who restrict the application of cybersecurity controls on their proprietary products.

The maritime sector has unique vulnerabilities that are a consequence of its nature with 80% of all world trade touching a ship at some point in its journey, experts say.
The maritime sector has unique vulnerabilities that are a consequence of its nature with 80% of all world trade touching a ship at some point in its journey, experts say.

To make matters even muddier, there are a plethora of regulatory bodies stepping all over each other in their well-intentioned attempts to make global shipping more cybersecure. In the U. S. alone, there are over a dozen agencies that play a role in maritime security, which causes effort overlaps and waste. This confusion is made worse by a lack of international cooperation on common standards for items such as incident reporting timelines.

What Can Be Done Now

Obstacles aside, there are many ways that maritime cybersecurity can be upgraded today. Here are some of the excellent ideas offered by the experts we spoke with.

Do a Cybersecurity Asset Inventory

Improving a shipping fleet’s level of cybersecurity is not a ‘dive in and fix it’ situation. To do it right, “organizations need to start with the basics,” said Bramson. This means doing a survey of the entire company’s Operational Technology (OT) infrastructure, “and that begins with a cybersecurity asset inventory,” he said. “Only with that information can crews move onto vulnerability management. You can only protect vital systems if you know what you have and where the risk lies.”

“It’s critical to map the systems and applications (and their dependencies) that are key to the ship’s operation, and map the relevant attack vectors that would allow threat actors to disable these systems,” Warshavski observed. “Only then will it be possible to accurately prioritize deployment of security measures and logging mechanisms that facilitate early detection, and allow organizations to mitigate attacks before they fully manifest and become highly disruptive.”

Ian BramsonABS Group
Ian Bramson
ABS Group

While the cybersecurity asset inventory is underway, shipping companies need to implement continuous monitoring of their IT and OT assets now before any changes/upgrades have been made. “Having a monitoring program running 24/7/365 enables organizations to proactively better prevent disruptions to their operations by detecting anomalies in real time,” Bramson explained. “By identifying exploits and rogue devices now, organizations can gain a more complete picture of the vulnerabilities present in their system.”

Implement Basic Cybersecurity Hygiene

Once the cybersecurity asset inventory has been completed, it is time to detect vulnerabilities and determine what needs to be changed in a shipping company’s IT and OT infrastructure, cyber defenses, and security processes. In other words, it is time to research, develop and implement a cybersecurity plan.

Caution: companies lacking the expertise to do this in-house should seek qualified outside help, because “identifying and implementing the appropriate technologies and processes is a key element in mitigating cyber risk,” said Blough.

So, what should a cybersecurity plan tailored to a specific shipping company include? “Well, a lot of cyber defenses are built upon what we sometimes call ‘Basic Cyber Hygiene’, or ‘Cybersecurity 101’,” Kessler replied.

Mapping a ship’s systems and applications (and their dependencies) and the relevant attack vectors that would allow threat actors to disable these systems, is key to deployment of security measures. Moritz Lüdtke image.
Mapping a ship’s systems and applications (and their dependencies) and the relevant attack vectors that would allow threat actors to disable these systems, is key to deployment of security measures. Moritz Lüdtke image.

For instance, shipping companies and their fleets should be running, at the very least, on the latest version of Windows — with their systems having security updates installed as soon as they become available. Critical systems should be isolated and protected using complicated passwords, rather than ‘12345’ or ‘PASSWORD’. If possible, shipping companies should investigate applying the ‘Zero Trust’ security approach to their systems. Zero Trust requires users to regularly authenticate their identities as they try to access resources on the network — much like swiping an electric pass at various locked doors — rather than just signing in at a main login portal and going wherever they like unchallenged. Hackers rely on this last weakness to let them break onto a network at one point, and then wreak havoc everywhere.

An effective cybersecurity plan touches on all aspects of a shipping company’s business, not just its ships. Dorian Mongel image.
An effective cybersecurity plan touches on all aspects of a shipping company’s business, not just its ships. Dorian Mongel image.

Other elements of basic cyber hygiene include separating crew access to the internet from corporate access — because people download all kinds of malware unthinkingly on their own time — and not allowing USBs to be used on corporate computers unless their provenance is absolutely known. After all, hackers are known to leave unmarked malware-loaded USB memory keys in the offices they’re targeting. All it takes is for one curious employee to plug the USB key into their computer to find out what it contains, and poof! The malware is launched into their network.

The next step is to replace outdated computers and networks with systems capable of running modern cyber defensive software. “There is an adage in information security that if you take a network that is not secure and try to layer security on top of it, the result will never be as good as using a network that was designed with security in mind in the first place,” said Kessler. He added that such ‘fixes’ can end up costing “a ton of money” without providing the desired results. “It’s actually more cost-effective to rebuild your network to be secure by design.”

Take a Wide-Ranging Approach to Cybersecurity

An effective cybersecurity plan touches on all aspects of a shipping company’s business, not just its ships. This is why all elements of that business must be considered and, if need be, changed, when a cybersecurity plan is being developed.

“Policies and procedures need to be updated to include cybersecurity resilience,” Bramson said. “Policies such as Management of Change (MoC) and an Incident Response Plan (IRP) need to include changes and response procedures for critical OT equipment.”

Sometimes hackers penetrate a target company’s network not by attacking it directly, but by penetrating the network of a company supplier with weaker security, and then using that bridgehead to enter their target. This is why shipping cybersecurity teams should find ways to identify attacks on their supply chains as well as themselves. In both instances, “protecting against these attacks is a matter of monitoring operations closely, having good identity and access management protocols, and adhering to cybersecurity best practices,” said Bramson.

“Attacks through the supply chain — for example, when malicious programs are inserted into a system or device that another company uses — are of concern,” he noted. “Preventing these attacks relies on rigorous acceptance and cyber testing of new equipment to identify anomalous behavior that could indicate deficiencies in the system.”

A wide-ranging approach to cybersecurity is not a one-shot deal. Once in place, it shapes everything the company does from now into the future. For example, “one of the most important things that companies should be doing is incorporating cybersecurity throughout all stages of the system development life cycle,” said Blough. “Including cybersecurity in activities such as business requirement reviews ensures that security issues are considered in these requirements and budgets before acquisition. Companies should also incorporate threat modeling into their IT system development lifecycle to proactively identify risks. Early adoption of cybersecurity requirements increases the efficiency and lowers the cost of cybersecurity controls compared to adding after development has been completed.”

Prepare for Penetrations

Reality check: The best cybersecurity defenses will be penetrated at some point, due to the inevitable synergy between hacker cunning and company bad luck. This is why the best cybersecurity plans assume that this will happen, and have proactive measures built in to limit and control the damage.

Preparing for penetration lies in staying aware of the latest cyber threats, so that shipping companies can identify and respond to them as soon as they breach the cyber defenses. “Be familiar with the ‘Battle Terrain’,” Warshavski advised. “Attacks will happen inside defended corporate networks, and our experience shows that companies that had a good understanding of their technology and security stack, across networks and cloud platforms, were better positioned to utilize the tools they already have to fend off attacks as they happened.”

Repelling penetrative attacks successfully also requires lots of pre —attack preparations, which is part of an effective cybersecurity plan. Fortunately, there are lots of after-attack response models to choose from. “One such framework that the U. S. government promotes is the NIST Cybersecurity Framework (CSF) and Risk-Management Framework (RMF) that is designed to help organizations manage their cybersecurity risk,” said Blough. “This approach allows organizations to efficiently focus resources on the appropriate areas based on risks specific to that organization rather than the alternative inefficient ad-hoc approach.”

A third element of effective after-attack response is putting together the company’s Response Team long before anything actually goes wrong. “Once an attack is discovered, there are multiple parties that have to be aligned to facilitate a swift response and recovery effort — Legal, PR, insurance, negotiators, Forensics, external IT support; just to name a few,” Warshavski said. “More often than not, some of these are various parties that have to work in perfect sync. It’s imperative to get them all in one room before an incident occurs, to ensure that procedures and proper lines of communications are properly established beforehand.”

Four core security domains in a framework to help mitigate cyber risk. Mandiant image.
Four core security domains in a framework to help mitigate cyber risk. Mandiant image.

Once all of this is in place, it is vital for shipping companies to stage cyber attack simulations on a regular basis, so that their people and procedures stay sharp and ready to respond appropriately. “Employees need to know what their role will be should an attack happen, so they can jump into action when the time comes,” Bramson said. “Cybersecurity incident response plans not only need to be established and maintained, but also to be practiced. As with other types of drills, such practice helps people cope with ‘if it happens’ situations, while improving their response times and decision-making during an actual event.”

One Last Thought

Given just how vulnerable many ships are to cyber attacks, and how central IT functions are to keeping modern vessels running safely and smoothly, the time has come for shipping companies to put this expertise onboard as a matter of course.

“I think having a bridge officer on board every vessel with informed responsibility for IT operations and cybersecurity is a place that we need to go,” said Kessler. “You need someone onboard who can look at an incident affecting the ship’s IT systems who can tell if it is user error, a bug or a cyber attack. Right now, many bridge crews can’t tell the difference between an act of God and an act of an intelligent actor when something goes wrong with their computers — and this just has to change.”

Trucker Tech Useful Equipment for the Road

TRUCKER TECH USEFUL EQUIPMENT FOR THE ROAD

A trucker’s cab is their office on the road, and often their home-away-from-home as well. As such, it makes sense for truckers to take the right technology along for the ride to make their lives more efficient, enjoyable, and safe.

Here are some “trucker tech” ideas that came across our desks at TSI that hit all of these marks.

Solare Self-Charging Headset

Solare solar headset

Microphone-equipped headsets can be a great hands-free communications tool for truckers. The trouble is that wireless versions eventually run out of battery power, putting them out of action during the recharging cycle. Wired versions do have this problem, but their cords can get in the way.

Now there’s a third option that avoids both of these shortcomings: The Solare solar-powered communications headset made by Blue Tiger. Built to military grade MIL-STD-810 standards, the Solare is designed to keep recharging itself using available light both indoors and outdoors. It does this using patented Powerfoyle solar technology, a nano material that converts any light source into energy. Add the fact that the Solare comes with 97% noise canceling technology to block out road noise and a high-quality headset speaker for clear audio playback, and this self-charging headset is a useful choice for truckers wanting reliable audio communications 24/7. The Solare has won numerous honors such as the CES 2022 Innovation Award and Green Builder Sustainable Product of the Year 2022 award.

https://www.bluetigerheadsets.com/bluetigersolare

SmartCap Protects Against Falling to Sleep

SmartCap and Truck Driver

Nodding off while on the road is something that all truckers do their best to avoid. But it is an ever-present danger during extremely long hauls, especially when delays are caused due to bad weather and poor weather conditions.

To combat this danger using technology, the Australian company SmartCap has developed the wearable “LifeBand” headband that can be worn by itself, or fitted into caps and hardhats. The LifeBand comes with electroencephalogram (EEG) sensors built into it that monitor brainwave activity, allowing this device to detect fatigue and microsleeps in drivers. According to SmartCap’s documentation, “SmartCap has been independently lab-validated and field-validated to ensure accuracy and effectiveness, with no calibration required before use.”

The data generated by the LifeBand can be monitored by drivers directly via the downloadable LifeApp (available in Apple and Android versions). This data can also be monitored remotely by trucking firm managers using SmartCap’s LifeHub dashboard, and integrated into their company’s fleet management systems as well.

https://www.smartcaptech.com/

Coffee When You Need It

Handcoffee truck 24v

Fresh coffee can be a trucker’s best friend, which is why easy access to fresh coffee while on the road is a must The French company Handpresso makes a range of on-the-road coffee makers – including some that use Nespresso cartridges and others that can work with ground coffee – that are designed to work with 12V and 24V DC electrical systems. They are available as standalone coffeemakers or in zippered kits that also include coffee cartridges and clear espresso glasses, for those times when multiple espresso shots are called for.

https://www.handpresso.com/en/36-on-the-road

Serious Dashcam Coverage

Nextbase 622GW Dash Cam

Dashcams have become a necessity for all drivers to capture what’s happening on the road in front of them – whether for insurance reasons when accidents occur, for law enforcement when other drivers break the law in dangerous and outrageous ways, or just to wow the world when a meteor falls within the vehicle’s view. This being said, not all dashcams are created equal. This is why savvy truckers choose high performance models like the Nextbase 622GW dash cam.

Nextbase Series 2 Lifestyle

Capable of recording full-motion 4K video at 30 frames per second – from which still photos can be extracted – the image-stabilized Nextbase 622GW captures the clear, high definition imagery that truckers need to protect themselves and their interests; even in the dark, thanks to this camera’s night vision mode. It can also alert emergency services when a driver is unresponsive following an accident via the Nextbase Emergency SOS service, and send 911 accurate coordinates to help find the truck via the what3words.com, which has mapped the world into unique three meter sections. This location data is updated and stored within the Nextbase 622GW at all times, allowing truckers to relay it to 911 themselves if a data connection is not available.

Finally, the Nextbase 622GW’s Intelligent Parking Mode can alert truckers to anyone trying to move their vehicles after they have left them. It can also be paired with a Nextbase rear view camera for extra visibility.

https://nextbase.com/dash-cams/622gw-dash-cam/

Amateur Radio for Extra Protection

There is no doubt that cellphones and CB radio are highly useful communications tools for truckers. But cellphone networks can be knocked by during emergencies and natural disasters, while CB radios have a limited range. So do mobile amateur radios – aka ham radios. But unlike CB radios, ham radios can connect to a worldwide network of ‘repeater’ stations, extending their range and their ability to call for help.

btechproduct uv 25x4uv

Of course, you have to pass a test to be a ham radio operator. But the days of needing to know Morse Code are long gone, while the knowledge needed to pass the amateur radio test through the ARRL (www.arrl.org/find-an-amateur-radio-license-class), the national US association for amateur radio.

btechproduct uv 25x4 all

Once you have your ham license, it is easy to install a mobile ham radio in your truck, allowing you to talk to other hams as you go down the road. One option for doing this affordably and effectively is the Baofeng BTECH UV-25X4. This tri-band mobile amateur radio – 136-174MHz (VHF), 220-260MHz (1.25M), and 400-520MHz (UHF) – can transmit at either 10 or 25 watts, and has FM added (65-108 MHz) in a listen-only mode. All of its functions can be controlled using the radio’s front-panel controls or the buttons mounted on its wired microphone, and viewed using the UV25X4’s full-color LCD display.

Add in a Nagoya TB-320A antenna and Nagoya RB-50 magnetic antenna mount to put it on top of the truck, and the Baofeng BTECH UV-25X4 will add that extra element of connectivity that survives cell phone outages and out-reaches CB Radio. It’s an safety-first element of reliable communications that all truckers should have in their cabs, especially if they drive in remote areas with poor cell phone coverage and limited truck traffic,

https://baofengtech.com/product/uv-25×4/

https://baofengtech.com/product/nagoya-tb-320a/

https://baofengtech.com/product/nagoya-rb-50/

Portable Power for Your Smartphone, Plus Radio

Eton Scorpion II with phone

There are times when the power dies in a truck cab, and the driver has to wait to be rescued.

Usually their smartphone battery will last long enough for this to happen, unless it’s a blizzard and they’re stuck waiting for days.

To ensure access to charging power plus life-saving radio news and weather, it makes sense to have an eTon Scorpion II radio onboard. Built with a carabiner clip in the handle so that it can be attached to a belt or backpack, the Scorpion II is a rugged AM/FM/NOAA weatherband radio with a built-in ½ watt LED flashlight. Its 800mAh lithium battery can be recharged using its hand-cranked generator, its onboard solar power panel, or by plugging the Scorpion II into an AC adaptor. 4 minutes of hand-cranking will provide enough power for one minute of talk time on a phone, or 10-15 minutes of radio usage.

This same battery can be used to top up smartphones using the Scorpion II’s USB port and charging cable (included). As a result, a driver can count on having access to radio, light, and power for their smartphone for as long as they are stuck in their truck. The Scorpion II also has a LED display panel to manage the radio, charging system, and clock, plus a built-in opener for standard glass drinking bottles.

https://etoncorp.com/products/scorpion-ii

A Truly Useful Multi-Tool

Leatherman Wave DIY Repair Automotive

Leatherman Wave+ DIY Repair Automotive

We don’t mean to show any disrespect to the Victorinox Swiss Army Knife multi-tool: It’s a pretty cool device. But the Leatherman Wave multi-tool is also cool, and provides functions that the Swiss Army Knife doesn’t. This is because the Leatherman Wave is built on a squeezable plier-type base, rather than a folding pocket knife. As such, it comes with tools such as needlenose and regular pliers, two types of wire cutters, an electrical crimper, and a wire stripper. The Leatherman Wave also includes a regular and a serrated knife, a saw, spring-action scissors, can and bottle openers, wood/metal and diamond-coated files, large and small bit drivers, a medium slot screwdriver, and even a ruler.

Victorinox Swiss Army Knife The Huntsman

Can’t decide between these multi-tools? Then you can find them both here:

https://www.victorinox.com

https://www.leatherman.com/wave-10.html

Ensuring Access to Clean Water

LifeStraw Squeeze

Just as there are rare times when a trucker will get in their cab due to bad weather, there are also occasions where they are out in the wilds somewhere to water, but not necessarily clean water. This is when water filtration products made by LifeStraw can literally be a lifesaver, such as the LifeStraw Squeeze 1 liter/quart flexible filter bottle for personal use or the LifeStraw Mission 5 or 12 liter/quart suspended water filtration gravity system for larger water needs.

LifeStraw Mission

Since LifeStraw’s water filtration systems are designed for the Great Outdoors, TSI magazine asked Ontario-based wilderness adventurer Nicole Adams (she has climbed Mount Kilimanjaro) to assess the usefulness of these products. Her verdict? The LifeStraw Squeeze is “small, surprisingly tough, and compresses into a convenient ball that you can tuck into a pocket,” said Adams. “It’s also very simple to use — open, fill, squeeze, drink — and includes a backflow syringe to clean the filter when needed.”

As for the larger capacity LifeStraw Mission? “Once you get the hang of it, it’s pretty easy to use,” she said. “The flow rate on the filtered water is relatively slow, but we simply filled our water bottles from the filtered tap and used that for drinking and cooking. There’s also a secondary valve to drain out unfiltered water (note: DO NOT drink water from that tap!) which proved handy when we needed water for washing dishes, or putting out our campfire at night.”

https://lifestraw.com/products/lifestraw-peak-series-collapsible-squeeze-1l-bottle-with-filter

https://lifestraw.com/products/lifestraw-mission

Stay Warmer with a Superlight Sleeping Bag

Spark Superlight

Sometimes a trucker has to camp out in a cab without sleeping accommodations. For these occasions, it can make sense to own a Spark Ultralight Sleeping Bag, because it does the job without requiring a lot of space. Available in models rated between 40 and 5 degrees Fahrenheit/5 to -125 degrees Celsius, the coldest-rated one-person Spark Superlight weighs 1lb 15oz/880g and compresses into a 6.6 cubic liter package. In short, it is very light and small when packed, yet capable of keeping the user warm in some pretty brutal conditions. Given that a truck cab will prevent some heat loss due to being relatively sealed against high winds, the Spark Superlight could keep a driver alive even in the coldest winter conditions

https://seatosummit.com/products/spark-ultralight-sleeping-bag-series

An e-Reader/Tablet Computer for the Road

Fire HD Colors

Being a trucker can mean long nights spent by oneself, with hours to kill before sleep and hitting the road again the next morning. This is when having an eBook that connects into the vast Amazon online library can be a useful companion, especially since Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited Library provides access to millions of eBooks for just $9.99 a month.

Of course, the downside of many eBook readers is that all they can do is provide access to eBooks. If you want a reader that does this plus serves as a full-color computer tablet – at an affordable price – then take a look at the Amazon Fire HD 10 tablet. It comes with a 10.1” 1080p Full HD touch screen that can access the web, allowing you to surf and connect via email and social media to your heart’s content.

That’s not all: The Fire HD 10 can access Netflix, Facebook, Hulu, Instagram, TikTok, and more through Amazon’s Appstore, plus it can connect to Zoom calls and work with Microsoft Office, OneNote, and Dropbox. At the same time, the Fire HD 10 is actually a superior eBook reader, because it supports full color pictures in high resolution, which is more than many eBook readers can do. This tablet can even be operated hands-free using the Amazon Alexa voice recognition command system.

https://www.amazon.com/kindle-dbs/hz/subscribe/ku

https://www.amazon.com/Fire-HD-10-tablet/dp/B08BX7FV5L

UNRULY PASSENGERS CONTINUE TO DISRUPT AIR TRAVEL

UNRULY PASSENGERS CONTINUE TO DISRUPT AIR TRAVEL

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has received 961 unruly passenger incidents since January 1, 2022. Of the 961 incidents, 635 involved facemasks, of which the FAA initiated an investigation on 274 incidents. In 2021, the FAA received more than 6,400 unruly passenger incidents, 4600 of which involved masks.

Air rage is aggressive or violent behavior on the part of a passenger, or passengers, on-board an aircraft and directed at the flight crews or other passengers. The first reported air rage case was in 1947 when an intoxicated passenger assaulted a flight attendant and another passenger on a flight from Havana to Miami. In 1950, another case was documented that involved a flight in Alaska when a passenger, later found to have had a history of mental problems, assaulted a flight attendant. The First officer left the cockpit and, with the help of two passengers, they were able to restrain the passenger.

The most significant known factor that causes air rage is alcohol. U. S. Airlines began serving alcohol on board in 1949, and, in some cases, it resulted in intoxicated passengers not complying with safety or security policies. During the Covid 19 pandemic years, the airlines ceased serving alcohol on board the planes, but that did not reduce the number of reported air rage incidents.

Covid 19 began affecting the lives of everyone in the world in March 2020. People lost their jobs, family members, homes, and businesses. Families were stressed — worried about making the mortgage or rent payment, grocery stores were closed, and Amazon was doing its best to deliver supplies. Stress and fear put everyone at a risk of more conflict — conflict with family members as everyone was stuck in the home together for extended periods. There was a conflict with store personnel when items were unavailable and the fear of the unknown — when is Covid going to end?

The number of reported passenger incidents has been consistent since the FAA began tracking the data in 1985, but that changed on January 29, 2021, when the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) created a ruling that travelers on public transportation conveyances and at airports must wear a face mask. The United States Federal Government backed the CDC ruling, and airlines immediately required that all passengers wear a face mask while on board the plane.

International air travel was down 75% in 2020 and 2021 compared to 2019, as many countries had closed their borders to travelers. Domestic air travel was down 45% compared to 2019 due to companies reducing business travel and families not taking vacations. Airline passengers were required to wear face masks to help prevent the spread of the virus. The flight attendants for the airlines were tasked with enforcing the mask policy. While most passengers complied, those who did not adhere often verbally and physically assaulted flight attendants and other passengers. The increase in unruly passengers on board airplanes resulted in Flight attendants refusing to work, delayed flights, planes returning to the gate to drop off non-compliant passengers, and, in many cases, an arrest. Airlines, the Federal Government, and Flight attendant unions struggled to find a quick solution to reduce the on-board conflicts. The FAA increased potential civil penalties for those who violated the regulation while airlines created internal no-fly lists and banned passengers who did not comply. The on-board conflicts continued to rise.

Frederick Reitz is the Managing Director of SAFEsky Inc. Established in 2006, SAFEsky provides aviation security training and consulting around the globe.

As humans, we have profound rooted principles learned from our parents and teachers; they define how we live, work, and behave around others. Differing Values are one of the most common drivers of conflict and were undoubtedly one of the reasons that many passengers refused to wear a mask while on an airplane. Some individuals felt that wearing a mask was the government’s way of controlling citizens. Other passengers felt that wearing the mask was a violation of individual freedoms. Many complained that being forced to wear a mask was against their religious belief or that they could not breathe. Most airplane passengers accepted that wearing a mask was uncomfortable but would help reduce exposure to the Covid 19 virus. They got that they did not have the power to win a conflict of differing values. Passengers with a different value than the airline’s mask policy were removed from the plane.

With air travel down, the aviation industry would expect the number of unruly passenger incidents to decline; however, the FAA and airlines would soon experience a drastic rise in unruly passengers. In 2021, the FAA received 5,981 disorderly passenger reports, of which 4,290 were mask-related incidents. The FAA initiated 1,113 investigations that resulted in 350 enforcement actions. The increase directly resulted from the on-board mask policy, with many passengers challenging the government authority to mandate a citizen wear a mask.

Different Perspectives are another driver of conflict on board planes, and there are numerous videos on social media of airplane passengers sharing their mask perspectives with others. Individuals who wore the mask would demand that others wear a mask. When a passenger refused to comply, conflicts would grow louder and often became physical. The problem with different perspectives is trying to convince the other person that their perspective is incorrect. Most passengers were optimists, believing they would stay healthy if they wore masks. The passengers who did not want to wear a mask were pessimists; they thought wearing a mask did not prevent the spread of the virus.

On March 24, 2022, ten airline CEOs came together with Airlines for America to request that President Biden end the federal mask mandate on planes stating that “the restrictions no longer reflect the realities of the current epidemiological environment.” The Federal Courts terminated the federal mask mandate on April 19, 2022, and immediately the unruly passenger incidents declined by approximately 70%, but violent incidents continued. The Federal Aviation Administration scrambled to find a solution to combat the rise in violence, including proposing a National “no-fly’ list. The national no-fly list would follow International, Federal, and State laws to ensure that the person’s civil liberties are protected and only include passengers found guilty of an unruly passenger incident. The reported incidents involve:

• Assaulting airport/airline crew members.

• Damaging aircraft property.

• Interfering with flight crews.

• Serious criminal incidents.

There are ways to resolve a conflict.

The flight attendant should talk directly to the passenger who needs to follow the safety or security procedure and not by using the public address system. Establish a rapport, and speak politely but firmly, reminding passengers that their safety is the airline’s concern.

Planning can help resolve the conflict quickly. The customer service agent boarding a flight sees the passenger is not wearing their mask and should immediately address the issue. Too often, the passengers are allowed to board the plane, and removing them becomes a challenge.

Never play the blame game or name call; for instance, the flight attendant tells the unruly passenger, “The Captain says if you do not comply with my requests, he/she will have you removed from the plane.” The passenger’s immediate response will be, “Let me talk to the pilot.

In the United States, The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is developing a program allowing airlines to share unruly passenger information. TSA would securely maintain the national ‘no-fly’ list, and the data would be provided and updated by participating airlines. An airline can add or remove a passenger from the “national no-fly list’ at any time. The FBI maintains the Federal no-fly list, which contains a list of known terrorists or those suspected of involvement with terrorist activities. The Federal no-fly list does not contain unruly passengers who have committed a crime on board an aircraft.

The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) is a regulatory agency tasked with ensuring airport security and preventing the hijacking of an aircraft, the database at the security checkpoints would contain information from the national no-fly list.

The details for the standardized no-fly list would be set by the airlines’ collaboration with the Department of Homeland Security. For example, failing to wear a mask on an airline would not get someone on the national no-fly list. However, assaulting an airline employee and a subsequent arrest and conviction would qualify an individual on the federal no-fly list.

A national no-fly list would ensure the safety of airline/airport crew members and passengers by preventing unruly individuals access to aircraft for a pre-determined amount of time or indefinitely.

Explicit and conscious explanations of security and safety policies will help reduce airplane conflicts. Professional conflict resolution training for flight attendants would provide them with the tools to de-escalate situations before they become serious.

TSA A RECOLLECTION OF FORMING ITS FIRST WORKFORCE

TSA A RECOLLECTION OF FORMING ITS FIRST WORKFORCE

Tony Pinto is retired from his career at the Transportation Security Administration where he held several positions including working in the Secure Flight Program Management Office, the Crew Vetting Program, the Maritime Pilot Program and the Rail Pilot Program. The mission of the TSA is to protect the nation’s transportation systems to ensure freedom of movement for people and commerce. This article is neither condoned nor endorsed by the TSA.

Most of us in aviation are intimately familiar with 9-11 and the subsequent creation of the Department of Homeland (DHS) and Transportation Security Administration (TSA). I am honored to tell you a little about my story with the establishment, challenges and accomplishments with the TSA.

Shortly after 9-11, those of us with a military affiliation were preparing for a call to action in support of the United States response to 9-11. In early 2002, I was in Alabama completing the first of several training iterations with the Army National Guard (ARNG) while also trying to spend time with family, friends and civilian colleagues. During a break in training, someone noticed a posting on the internet looking for a cohort of TSA Supervisory Transportation Security Officers (STSO’s). Without much thought, a few of us completed the questionnaire and returned to the training at hand.

Shortly thereafter, a call came from TSA with an invitation to attend an interview in Chicago, Ill. Simply said, it was unbelievably fast and furious as TSA was forming its first, front-line workforce. The interview process was intense and consisted of stations for color vision, hand dexterity, comprehension, decision making and communication. We found ourselves in the midst of TSA integrating a host of other agency systems to support our mission sustainment, i.e., procurement, time and attendance, travel vouchers and personnel actions. Conditional offers were made and, on that day, a group of unknowns embarked on an unimaginable journey.

Training consisted of one week in Oklahoma City (OKC) to become screener qualified and once completed, we were immediately dispatched into the field for one week of on-the-job (OJT). After OJT, we returned to OKC for supervisory qualification and once again were immediately dispatched into the field for a final week of OJT. Preparing to depart on our first tasking, our cohort somehow became what was referred to as the “First 300”. Our agreement with this newly formed National Deployment Force (NDF), was to remain in travel status for one year to oversee the training and federalization of approximately 429 airports. In May 2002, we assembled at Baltimore-Washington International Airport (BWI) and began our mission.

By any measure, federalizing BWI was exceptionally challenging for everyone. Passenger wait times were tremendously high, ranging in the 30–45-minute range. Airline staff did their best to monitor and triage long lines consistent with scheduled aircraft departure times. Passenger and baggage throughput and random gate screening returned unimaginable metrics. We assembled daily for in-briefings and out-briefings to rollout updates to our screening Standard Operating Procedures (SOP’s). Policies on appearance, passenger handling and observing the protocols of the American with Disabilities Act (ADA) were just a few of the topics that underwent multiple iterations.

A few weeks into our assignment, several of us were designated to monitor and document a stringent set of OJT requirements as well as handle first point of contact problem resolution. One noteworthy encounter was denying a passenger from carrying a nail clipper on her flight. While talking with our vocally frustrated passenger, it was reported that the nail clipper was a gift from a foreign dignitary and had great sentimental value. By the powers to be, we were fortunate enough to get to the ticket counter and expedite a bag check.

Another interesting day ended with mediating a dispute between two colleagues. One gentleman wore an earring while another wore a military award insignia, both prohibited with a recent appearance modification. Speaking to each individually, the gentleman with the earring was simply cavalier about the new guidance and the other gentleman wore his pin in protest of the wearing of the earring. Once things straightened out, I came to find out the insignia represented a Silver Star earned in Vietnam. I also came to find out he was a personal body guard for former Mayor Koch of New York City. And while the stories could go on and on, suffice to say we completed our mission and were dispatched in groups to federalize the remaining airports.

In August 2002, I was activated for Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) in Afghanistan. Returning home and back to work, indications were terrorists were planning an operation similar to 9-11 utilizing airline crewmembers. A team of forty-one STSO’s were sent to Washington, D. C., to stand up the Crew Vetting Program (CVP) at the Transportation Security Operations Center (TSOC) in Reston, Virg. Collaterally, we assisted with the implementation of a programs to track Federal Air Marshals (FAM’s) and Federal Flight Deck Officers (FFDO’s). It was twelve-hour shifts, six days a week but exciting to collaborate in a newly established, multi-agency facility.

In response to the March 2004, terrorist bombing of Madrid-area train stations, DHS and TSA partnered with the rail industry to launch a three-phase pilot program called Transit Rail Inspection Pilot (TRIP). The goal of the program was to determine the feasibility of leveraging airport screeners to evaluate currently available and emerging screening technologies. Twelve of us were tasked to execute the program and became known as the “Dirty Dozen”. While initially chartered for a six month, three phase program, we were subsequently tasked with follow-on screening support for the Republican Nation Convention in New York City and 2005 Presidential Inaugural “Freedom Ball” in Washington, D. C.

Continuing to address all sectors of transportation, DHS and TSA responded to the February 2004 bombing of a Philippine passenger ferry and dispatched our team to execute a maritime pilot program called Secure Automobile Inspection Lane (SAIL). Based in Cape May, New Jersey, we spent one month on the Cape May-Lewes ferry evaluating currently available technologies in various environments.

In 2006, the Administration was actively seeking ways to leverage data exchange protocols that could be applied across several programs. TSA partnered with Customs and Border Protection (CBP) to apply a clear set of syntax rules enabling real-time vetting. Adopting practices within the scope of the United Nations rules for Electronic Data Interchange for Administration, Commerce and Transport (UN/EDIFACT), we were able to cross-utilize program successes. We assisted the Alien Flight Student Program (AFSP), a program that enables TSA to adjudicate flight students who are not U. S. citizens to ensure they do not pose a threat to aviation or national security.

Continuing to leverage knowledge and skills gained, several of us retrained to support the Secure Flight Program (SF). My colleagues stepped up to assist with Industry Performance and Analysis (IPA), Program Management Office (PMO) and Intelligence analytics.

I retired in 2015, very grateful for the work and support of the entire TSA family and my closest colleagues. Their tireless dedication and professionalism in securing our national transportation and infrastructure sectors are executed with passion, commitment and determination. Sharing these experiences highlights only some of TSA’s incredible accomplishments, recognized globally for securing the interest of our nation!

AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE TRENDS WHAT TO EXPECT IN 2023

AUTONOMOUS VEHICLE TRENDS WHAT TO EXPECT IN 2023

They may not be ubiquitous yet, but automated technologies across the automotive industry are starting to come of age. The ‘robotaxi’ industry and autonomous trucks are on the cusp of real-world use, and next-generation sensor technologies are being deployed on vehicles that are for sale. Here is a look at some of the most exciting developments from the last year.

Robotaxis Services Coming Online

Commercial service robotaxis have come online in San Francisco. This is a major milestone, but it is not as exciting as it initially sounds.

Cruise was the first to reach the milestone. Their journey began in October 2020, when Cruise was awarded a driverless testing permit by California DMV. It could run the vehicles without anyone on board, not even a test driver. In June 2021, it was given permission to start offering rides without a safety driver on board. These were free rides — no paying customers — an important distinction. The big step came in September 2021 when both Waymo and Cruise were awarded a “driverless deployment permit”. The final part of the puzzle would be gaining permission to operate a commercial service from California Public Utilities Commission, which was awarded to Cruise in June 2022.

However, only 30 vehicles, out of Cruise’s fleet of approximately 150 vehicles, are allowed to be used and only in a small part of the city. Still, a step in the right direction.

Outside of the U. S., China has also been ramping up its autonomous robotaxi deployments. Baidu and Pony.ai conduct significant testing in Beijing and, like Cruise and Waymo, have limited commercial robotaxi services. Baidu and Pony.ai were given permission to start a robotaxi service with no driver behind the wheel in April of this year, with one slight catch. Their services must still have a supervisor present in the vehicle

Roboshuttles Struggling

This future mobility solution is fast becoming not so new, not so exciting and possibly soon confined to history. The concept of a roboshuttle-powered future is that these small, shared vehicles will be able to operate more flexibly than a bus, offering more diverse routes and some working on an on-demand basis.

The pioneers in this industry are EasyMile and Navya, two French companies with similar vehicles and funding of around €100 million each. Over the years, they have supplied around 200 vehicles each to different companies, transport agencies, and other mobility stakeholders that are interested in trialing the technology. But they appear no closer to deploying a commercial roboshuttle service. Even more concerning is that interest in these vehicles seems to be on the decline. Notable companies such as Local Motors have closed their doors, while others like Continental and Bosch have shown concepts in the past but then gone quiet on the topic.

Autonomous Trucks

Autonomous trucks have become one of the most exciting autonomous prospects this year. A key development in the field occurred when field leader TuSimple completed an 80-mile journey across Arizona with an empty cabin and zero human intervention. All the conditions are right for this industry to explode: a measurable and known driver shortage in the U. S., Europe and China, the massive growth in e-commerce and the need for more freight on the road. There is also significant overlap between the capability of today’s autonomous technology and the demands of the environment that the vehicles will operate in. The first deployments will likely be between distribution hubs separated by vast stretches of interstate. This eliminates the more challenging scenarios for autonomous vehicles, such as pedestrians, stop signs, un-protected left turns and turning right on red lights which rely on human judgment. Finally, autonomous trucks can bring a significant increase in productivity. Many of the journeys across the U. S. take several days for humans to complete due to driving time limits. Autonomous vehicles will not be subject to this. It looks like the stars are aligning for autonomous trucks.

Trends in Automotive LiDAR

The last year or so seems to have been a turning point for LiDAR, with more OEMs announcing models that will be equipped with them. Volvo will be using Luminar along with Chinese OEM SAIC. Continental and Denso are shipping on Toyotas and Lexus. The Audi A8 carries a Valeo, as do some Mercedes. BMW have chosen Innoviz, as have Volkswagen, and the list goes on. With the automotive industry’s current focus on safety and the benefits that LiDAR has been promising, this trickle-down effect might look more like a gush/pour/stream/cascade than a trickle.

Three Predictions for 2023

Here are three predictions for 2023:

1. Robotaxi service expansion: There are now a small handful of robotaxi services coming online in the U.S. Next year this will grow. It is unlikely that many new cities will go online; but the services in existing cities will grow — particularly Cruise in San Francisco.

2. Commercial ‘driver-out’ autonomous trucking will enter a trialing phase: IDTechEx thinks that in 2023 the first commercial autonomous truck routes without a driver behind the wheel will go online. This will likely start with a single route, perhaps Tucson to Phoenix, as demonstrated by TuSimple. However, IDTechEx thinks a handful of routes and companies will be online by the end of next year.

3. More level three vehicles in Europe enabled by higher performing radar and LiDAR: There has only been one true level three car on the market, the Mercedes S-Class. However, its level three functionality could only be used in Germany. IDTechEx thinks that next year more OEMs like BMW, and Stellantis will be looking to deploy level three vehicles. Additionally, the UK and some European countries will likely allow level three to be used on their roads. In Germany, there may be the level three speed limit increase from 60kph to 130kph thanks to a UNECE regulation change coming into effect in January. Level three in the U. S. and China is harder to predict. They pushed the bounds of what is possible and are lobbying for more regulation around higher automated level deployments. IDTechEx does not think it will be long before deployments are seen here as well.