February theme: Aviation securityNew Zealand tightens small-plane security measures
Following a 8 February attack by a passenger on a 19-seater plane — a woman passenger lunged at the pilots with a knife — the New Zealand government orders security training stepped up for airline and airport staff at regional airports and a feasibility study on installing flight deck barriers on small aircraft
The New Zealand government moved Monday to tighten airport security following the country’s first hijack attempt earlier this month by a woman who has been charged with attacking two pilots on a small commuter plane. The new measure ordered security training stepped up for airline and airport staff at regional airports and a feasibility study on installing flight deck barriers on small aircraft. It held back, though, from ordering full preflight security screening of passengers and their hand luggage pending a review of domestic aviation security.
At present, New Zealand Civil Aviation Authority rules do not require small regional airports handling aircraft with fewer than ninety passengers to have facilities to X-ray hand baggage or screen passengers with metal detectors. Transport Minister Annette King described the attempted hijacking of a 19-seater commuter plane flying between Blenheim and Christchurch on 8 February as “a one-off occurrence by a disaffected person,” but said it was timely to review security requirements, including the costs and benefits of additional security measures. A Somali immigrant charged with a number of offenses relating to the hijack attempt has been remanded in custody under the Mentally Impaired Persons Act.
