Towards more secure charter flights

No one who provides or participates in aircraft charter trips wants to even think about lines, security checks or baggage searches. But in today's legislative environment, these inconveniences loom as a clear and present danger to the personal freedoms we're accustomed to enjoying in this area of aviation travel.

We all know that there are undeniably good reasons for airline-type security measures to be required for some types of charter flights. But we also know that there are undeniably good reasons to fear that all charter flights might be painted with the same broad bureaucratic brush of security rules and regulations whether they are needed or not.

If some travel promoter charters a Boeing 737 and fills it with people who responded to an advertised Las Vegas weekend, none of us would really want to get on that charter flight without the same type of security measures common to commercial airline flights. Since it is a non-scheduled charter flight, you don’t want to be perturbed by the regular security checks. This flight can be hijacked and used as a deadly weapon for large scale destruction.

So what is the answer? How should charter flight security be administered?

Rules already in effect:

The new Transportation Security Administration (TSA) has ruled that "aircraft operators using aircraft with a maximum certificated takeoff weight of 95,000 pounds or more, except a government charter, will now be required to ensure that individuals and their accessible property are screened before boarding.

In another of its early regulatory acts, the TSA released the "twelve-five" security program for passenger and cargo carriers that operate aircraft weighing at least 12,500 pounds and do not already have full or partial security programs in place. The rule is not fully detailed and is yet to come. The rule also covers "private charters" that enplane/deplane in terminal areas with security checkpoints. Beyond the twelve-five program, the rule includes a requirement that flight crew members have fingerprint-based criminal history checks.

This is all well and good, but what kind of security requirements will charter services and their passengers have to deal with in the future?

Chances are that the TSA will have to deal with typical charter flights - a handful of passengers in a business aircraft where there are no strangers in the cabin.
But what security, if any, is really needed for this kind of operation?

Here are charters securities guidelines used by one of the Midwest's largest charter operators:

·When a new, unknown customer calls to schedule a trip, ask for references, and check them carefully.
·Require a passenger manifest from every customer and check it against passenger photo IDs prior to departure. (Ensure a positive bag match to each passenger and do not load any unidentified bags).

·Be alert and report anything suspicious to the local FBI office immediately.