At 8:46 on New York time the first plane hit the World Trade Center north tower. After 17 minutes the second plane hit the south tower of the WTC. Fifteen years ago the US lives have changed forever.
It is a well-known fact that the United States was not prepared for a terrorist attack of such magnitude. The terrorist attack of 11 September 2001 has changed the United States as well as the world. People started to treat terrorism as a "threat №1". Some experts have called the September 11 attacks, “the beginning of Third World War”.US president's national security adviser Condoleezza Rice (2002) said that the events of September 11have opened a new era in international relations. Something similar had happened after the Second World War, radically changed the balance of power in the world.
It took one and a half months after the tragedy, before US President George W. Bush has decided to once again take to the air. During the “demonstration” flights from Washington to Chicago the president sought to assure Americans' safety. Already in the air, Bush told reporters that members of the government started using planes again. During his speech at the airport in Chicago, the President proposed to increase the number of federal air marshals on American planes. Among other measures Bush called reinforced flight deck doors and the allocation of $ 500 million to improve the tracking and the unification of the rules of flight (“At O'Hare, President Says, Get On Board”, 2001).
In a couple of months after the terrorist attack on Twin Towers, Congress pushed through the Homeland Security Act in order to present a new improved plan of nation protection, which included new security measures for US airports. The aim of the Homeland Security Act was to start the American nation defense from any further possible terrorist attacks (“How has National Security Changed since 9/11/2001?”).
The terrorists captured airliners so easily only because the doors to the cockpit were no previously locked, and any passenger could penetrate without problems.
Now it is forbidden to carry items on board that can be used as cold weapons - knives, scissors, golf clubs, corkscrews, baseball bats, etc. The list of prohibited items for carriage on board has also been added by liquid volume over 88 ml. The airports have the system of advance passenger checks: the passengers are obliged to take off outer clothing and shoes and have a full body scan (Taylor & Steedman, 2003).
The United States earlier have also taken a tough position on visas because of the migration policy, and after the Black Tuesday the process of issuing complicated even more, forcing potential visitors when completing the questionnaire to respond to a large list of issues related to terrorism, and the procedure of the interview became supported by fingerprinting.
Lists of unreliable passengers in the United States are created by the Department of Homeland Security. There are two lists: first one is for those who are suspected of terrorist activities. These individuals are prohibited from obtaining air tickets to the United States; second list consists of citizens, the activity of which, for various reasons, causing concern among law enforcement agencies. Usually in such cases additional baggage check shall be made. There is also a list of people whose behavior airport security recommends treating with special attention. This category includes passengers who buy tickets at the last minute and pay it in cash or those who buy one-way ticket (Stewart & Mueller, 2013).
In addition to the United States after the September 11 attacks, additional security measures were introduced at airports of most European countries. At the Heathrow London airport the passengers are being warned in advance about flight delays related to a more thorough inspection of baggage. It is forbidden to put the cutting and piercing items inside the suitcases or carry them to the board of the plane. In the case of the suspicion during the operation of the metal detector authorities are allowed to proceed with a handheld inspection of the passenger and his belongings. During the flight, British airlines require pilots to keep the door to the cockpit tightly locked (“Counter-terrorism measures in British airports. Ninth report of session 2009-2010”, 2010). Similar security measures are resented in German, Italian, Greek airlines.
US governmental and city authorities spend a lot of resources on security measures. Stewart & Mueller (2013) argue that there can be particular reasons airplanes high level of security, nevertheless, there is no need for high protection of the airports. The reason of such believes authors of the article confirm with the fact that compared with other public places, in airports people are more dispersed, that is why the likelihood of a terrorist attack is less, then, for instance, if a crowded stadium is targeted.
Stevens et al. (2004) propose low costs measures to heighten the effectiveness of homeland security in national airports. The scholars present such measures as: bomb-checking all vehicles entering the airport territory; enlarge the quantity of lines for people checking in in order to lessen the congregation of people as a possible aim of terrorist attack; provide the training of airport security staff of SWAT standards as a measure of their reaction on terrorist attack improvement; add hand bomb and hand metal detectors for quick exposure of prohibited items; enlarge the quantity of special trained dogs for explosives detection.
All these measures do not require a lot of governmental resources however they are to be very effective in homeland airport security improvement.
In conclusion, it can be noted that US airport security has improved greatly since the dreadful terrorist attack of September 11. The measures taken to heighten national security cost a lot of resources and effort. But the development of airport security has not stopped, that is why new low-cost ways to improve security levels should be provided.
References
Rice, C. (2002, December). A Balance of Power that Favors Freedom. US National Security Strategy: A New Era. US Foreign Policy Agenda. Volume7:4, p. 5-9.
“At O'Hare, President Says, Get On Board” (2001, September). The White House – George W. Bush. Retrieved from https://georgewbush-whitehouse.archives.gov/news/releases/2001/09/20010927-1.html
Stewart, M. G. & Mueller, J. (2013). Cost-benefit Analysis of Airport Security: Are Airports too Safe? Journal of Air Transport Management. Retrieved from http://politicalscience.osu.edu/faculty/jmueller/JATMfin.pdf
Stevens, D., Schell, T., Hamilton, T., Mesic, R., Brown, M.S. (2004). Near-Term Options for Improving Security at Los Angeles International Airport. Santa Monica: RAND Corporation.
Counter-Terrorism Measures in British Airports. Ninth Report of Session 2009-2010 (2010). Great Britain: Parliament: House of Commons: Home Affairs Committee.
Taylor, A. B. & Steedman, S. (2003, December). The Evolution of Airline Security since 9/11. International Foundation for Protection Officers. Retrieved from http://www.ifpo.org/resource-links/articles-and-reports/protection-of-specific-environments/the-evolution-of-airline-security-since-911/
How has National Security Changed since 9/11/2001? Security Degree Hub. Retrieved from http://www.securitydegreehub.com/national-security-since-9-11/
