Aviation and Airport

IMMIGRATIONDHS Threatens to Halt Customs Processing at Airports in Sanctuary Cities
By Thérèse Boudreaux, The Center Square
Major airports across the country could soon freeze customs processing and cancel all international flights if sanctuary cities continue bucking federal immigration enforcement operations.
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DRONESWho Has Authority to Deal with Drones? In Most of Europe, That’s Unclear
By James Reeves
Europe’s growing drone problem is a governance problem. The hardware exists. What is missing, across most of the continent, is the legal authority to deploy it, the jurisdictional clarity to coordinate it, and the political will to mandate either.
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AIRPORT SECURITYWalk-Through Screening System Enhances Security at Airports Nationwide
By Ariana Tantillo
A new security screener that people can simply walk past may soon be coming to an airport near you. Last year, U.S. airports nationwide began adopting HEXWAVE to satisfy a new Transportation Security Administration (TSA) mandate for enhanced employee screening to detect metallic and nonmetallic threats.
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AVIATION SAFETYNew Technology is Keeping the Skies Safe
DHS S&T Baggage, Cargo, and People Screening (BCP) Program develops state-of-the-art screening solutions to help secure airspace, communities, and borders
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AVIATION SAFETYActions from Federal Government Needed to Alleviate Air Traffic Controller Staffing Shortages at Many Facilities: Report
The current shortage of staff at air traffic control facilities is attributable to past hiring constraints and a misallocated workforce, the effects of which may be exacerbated by current inefficiencies in shift scheduling, says a new report.
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AVIATION SAFETYNew Tech Will Make Our Airplanes Safer
By Yulia Karra
Odysight.ai’s technology allows for constant monitoring of aircraft, sending alerts in case of malfunctions that could lead to accidents.
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REAL IDSecurity Theater REALized and Flying without REAL ID
By Alexis Hancock
After multiple delays of the REAL ID Act of 2005 and its updated counterpart, the REAL ID Modernization Act, in the United States, the May 7th deadline of REAL ID enforcement has finally arrived. Does this move our security forward in the skies?
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REAL IDReal ID Is Useless, Unconstitutional, and Finally Here
By Patrick G. Eddington
At its core, the mentality behind REAL ID is that every American is a potential airline terrorist first and a citizen of the Republic a very distant second. Among other problems, a REAL ID requirement potentially creates an end-run around direct regulation of the right to travel. REAL ID obliterates the idea of freedom of travel, which is why it should be abolished.
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INFRASTRUCTUREHeathrow Power Outage Exposes Infrastructure Vulnerabilities
The cause of Thursday’s power outage at Heathrow Airport, the result of a fire at the North Hyde electrical substation, is still not known, but it has highlighted several vulnerabilities in the U.K.s infrastructure.
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AIRPORT SECURITYReimagining Imaging at the Airport
The Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) are collaborating on Advanced Imaging Technology to improve the passenger screening experience.
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AVIATION SECURITYU.S. Grounds All Flights to Haiti for a Month After Planes Hit by Gunfire
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has ordered the cancellation of all flights to Haiti for a month after two jets of U.S. airline companies were hit by gunfire while flying over Haiti’s capital Port-au-Prince.
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AVIATION SAFETYStudy: Flying Keeps Getting Safer
By Peter Dizikes
Reflecting a “Moore’s Law of aviation,” commercial flight has become roughly twice as safe each decade since the 1960s; Covid-19 added a wrinkle, however.
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INADMISSIBLE MIGRANTSAnother Report Says CBP, ICE Not Detaining, Removing Inadmissibles Flying into Country
By Bethany Blankley, The Center Square
A DHS OIG audit found that a regional CBP and ICE detention and removal processes were ineffective at one major international airport, the OIG audit found. Between fiscal years 2021 and 2023, the report found CBP agents at this airport released at least 383 inadmissible travelers from custody into the U.S. who, under the law, are prohibited from entering the country.
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AVAIATION SECURITYCybertech Startup Aims to Keep Aircraft Safe
By Zachy Hennessey
As hackers get more daring and sophisticated, and even try to hijack airplanes, it’s increasingly vital to keep our aircraft safe from attack. Cybertech startup Cyviation aims to do just that.
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AIRPORT SECURITYPrototype Self-Service Screening System Unveiled
TSA and DHS S&T unveiled a prototype checkpoint technology, the self-service screening system, at Harry Reid International Airport (LAS) in Las Vegas, NV. The aim is to provide a near self-sufficient passenger screening process while enabling passengers to directly receive on-person alarm information and allow for the passenger self-resolution of those alarms.
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