At a meeting in Abu Dhabi last week, the International Air Transport Association (IATA) called for aviation security to be further strengthened by addressing four key areas;
   (1) Closer government-to-government cooperation to eliminate the long-term challenges of extraterritorial measures,
   (2) The universal application of global standards,
   (3) Better information-sharing among governments and with industry, and
   (4) The efficient implementation of new and existing technology capabilities.
IATA says governments must avoid the long-term use of extraterritorial measures and ensure that airlines are not left to bear the financial brunt of unplanned expenses for an indeterminate period. Airlines have operational know-how; governments and the industry are partners in aviation security.
Threats to aviation are real. And sometimes unilateral additional measures of an extraterritorial nature may be unavoidable. But these cannot be long-term solutions and airlines should not be caught in the middle, picking up the pieces later. No-one can predict the next security challenge, but some things are certain: our common defence is stronger when governments and industry work together.
Global standards are critical to effectively manage the security of a global industry. Â Individual nations are responsible for implementing effective security measures. IATA welcomed the development of the Global Aviation Security Plan (GASeP) by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) and urged its swift implementation. Better information sharing and coordination on security measures among governments and with the import and export industry is essential. Certification processes need to be streamlined and coordinated across jurisdictions.
Technology plays a key role in keeping aviation secure. Airlines, shippers and agents all need to be on guard against future challenges by terrorists and hackers.
