general

The woman flying out of Philadelphia’s airport last year remembered to pack snacks, prescription medicine and a cellphone in her handbag. But what was more important was what she forgot to unpack: a loaded .380-caliber handgun in a black holster. The weapon was one of the 6,542 guns the Transportation Security Administration intercepted last year at airport checkpoints across the country. The number — roughly 18 per day — was an all-time high for guns intercepted at US airports, and is sparking concern at a time when more Americans are armed. “What we see in our checkpoints really reflects what we’re seeing in society, and in society there are more people carrying firearms nowadays,” TSA administrator David Pekoske said.With the exception of pandemic-disrupted 2020, the number of weapons intercepted at airport checkpoints has climbed every year since 2010. Experts don’t think this is an epidemic of would-be hijackers — nearly everyone caught claims to have forgotten they had a gun with them — but they emphasize the danger even one gun can pose in the wrong hands on a plane or at a checkpoint. Guns have been intercepted literally from Burbank, California, to Bangor, Maine. But it tends to happen more at bigger airports in areas with laws more friendly to carrying a gun, Pekoske said. The top 10 list for gun interceptions in 2022 includes Dallas, Austin and Houston in Texas; three airports in Florida; Nashville, Tennessee; Atlanta; Phoenix; and Denver. Pekoske isn’t sure the “I forgot” excuse is always true or whether it’s a natural reaction to getting caught. Regardless, he said, it’s a problem that must stop. When TSA staffers see what they believe to be a weapon on the X-ray machine, they usually stop the belt so the bag stays inside the machine and the passenger can’t get to it. Then they call in local police.<br/>

Cabin crew in Europe have been told to be on the lookout for light-fingered passengers after reports of an increase in vital safety equipment being lifted from planes. Travellers taking souvenirs from aircraft is nothing new - cutlery, inflight magazines, travel rugs. Online auction listings are full of these. However, the mania for aeroplane memorabilia is being taken to new, dangerous heights. This week The Sun reported that there has been an increase in life vests being lifted from passenger jets. Pointing to eBay listings, unused plane life jackets are being flogged at $200 a pop. You can easily find unexpired life jackets and vests, with current ACS certificates for sale. While some of these are surplus sold to AV Geeks, there are plenty of objects apparently swiped from passenger seats. One exasperated former flight attendant said the issue of vests being taken by passengers is nothing new. It’s an item that has to be replaced with worrying frequency. “We had to check each seat after each flight to make sure each one had a vest,” they told the Washington Post.<br/>

Frankfurt Hahn airport’s administrator has re-issued an invitation for potential investors in the German facility. Administrator Jan Markus Plathner says the invitation follows “refused approvals” and “new expressions of interest”, after previous options failed to materialize. A prospective bidder for Hahn, Swift Conjoy, had been discussing acquisition but did not complete the sale. Plathner had explored alternatives and was negotiating a second provisional contract – reportedly from Russian-linked company NR Holding. But this appears not to have been finalised. The new deadline for submitting bids has been set for 9 March with closure expected to take place by 26 March. “We would like to give potential interested parties the chance to participate in the investor process,” says Plathner. “However, the focus remains on reaching a solution in a timely manner.” He adds that the timeframe and conditions of the sale are subject to change. Operations at Frankfurt Hahn are continuing under the insolvency process. The summer schedule will feature additional European routes.<br/>

Airport operator Aena plans to buy new machines that will allow passengers to keep computers and liquids inside carry-on luggage when going through X-ray checkpoints. The new luggage-screening equipment, as well as other biometric and security systems for all its airports, will cost the company about E1.17b, Aena said on Monday, confirming a report by newspaper El Pais. “The new X-ray technology will generate 3D images,” the company said, adding that electronic devices and liquids will no longer have to be taken out of the luggage for screening. Aena expects to install the machines in all its terminals by 2028. The new technology might be deployed in some airports as early as late 2023, El Pais reported. In Britain, authorities have ordered airport operators to install such machines by 2024. <br/>

Dubai International Airport (DXB) more than doubled its annual passenger traffic last year, exceeding its own forecast and retaining the title of the world's busiest international hub for the ninth consecutive year. The airport handled 66.1m passengers in 2022, growing 127% year-on-year and exceeding its forecast of 64.3m, on the back of a strong Q4, operator Dubai Airports said on Tuesday. “We knew it was the year when growth would return to the air travel sector in a big way but the surge was much stronger than anticipated and we had to do our best to turn that challenge into an opportunity," said Paul Griffiths, chief executive of Dubai Airports. "We were ready to meet the challenge of rapid recovery in customer numbers while delivering significant improvement in our service quality across the board.” Passenger traffic in the last three months of 2022 jumped 67% year-on-year to 19.7m, marking the airport's busiest quarter since 2019, according to the state-owned operator. December was the busiest month of the year with 7.1m passengers, the first time since January 2020 that Dubai International Airport's monthly traffic hit the 7m mark. Dubai Airports is projecting the number of passengers who will pass through the international hub by the end of this year to reach 78m, as the UAE prepares to host major international events such as the Dubai Airshow and Cop28, Griffiths said. “Given its dynamism and global impact, there is never a dull year for the aviation sector and 2023 will be no exception ... it will be another year of new challenges and opportunities and we are ready for them," he said.<br/>

Airport officials may be held liable for years of neglect that led to the glitch on New Year’s Day resulting in the shutdown of the Philippine airspace and 600 cancelled flights, Sen Grace Poe said on Monday. At a press briefing, Poe, chair of the Senate committee on public services, said the dilapidated state of the Air Traffic Management Center (ATMC) of the Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) reflected the incompetence of concerned officials. “This started from several administrations. The fact that they were allowed to operate without having proper maintenance in the last three years is itself a violation, is incompetence or negligence on the part of the management of CAAP itself and not just individuals,” she said. With no immediate solution in sight, Poe expressed concern that the Jan 1 “technical glitch,” which inconvenienced about 65,000 passengers and caused airline losses of up to P100 million, could happen again. Poe made the statement as she indicated that her committee was releasing this week or next week the report on its inquiry into the New Year’s Day glitch and after she and other Senate leaders and transportation officials inspected ATMC facilities in Pasay City on Feb 6. “[A glitch] can really still happen. Inasmuch as we don’t want to scare the public, but right now, [Caap is] more focused on [addressing] the situation because it already happened,” she said.<br/>