A Terrorist attack on the United States may be in the planning after the election to make a federal response less effective. This is a scary likelihood mentioned by one of the most knowledgeable attorneys and leaders in the global aviation industry, Paul Hudson.
Mr. Hudson referred to a new report by key House Republicans emphasizes the need for a strong response from the Biden administration to counter the immediate threat posed by foreign terrorist groups like the Islamic State, al Qaeda, as well as Iran-aligned forces such as Hezbollah and Hamas, to the security of the American homeland.
Ninety-one million foreign visitors are expected in the United States by 2026, making the travel and tourism industry an important export and money earner.
As the world saw on September 11, 2001, and as it has seen during COVID lockdowns, travel and tourism prosperity depend on nature, diseases, and safety and security.
Of course, this sector’s resilience has been enormous, and the urge for people to explore the world will not vanish. All stakeholders, including consumer advocate organizations, should be part of the discussion to prevent such threats.
According to outspoken Paul Hudson, founder and president of Flyers Rights, threats against the United States and aviation would more likely develop after the November 8 US election, not to hurt Vice President Kamala Harris’s election chances.
Flyers Rights is the nation’s largest airline passenger advocacy organization, with over 60,000 members and supporters.
Likely targets could include mass gatherings such as concerts and sports events, crowded airports, US officials and embassies, mass shootings, and hostage takings.
Such attacks had been carried out before, mainly in Europe.
Swarm Drone Attack on the Capitol or White House
There is also the possibility of a swarm drone attack on the Capitol and White House as cheap armed drones are now readily available and used routinely in the Ukraine War and the Middle East.
The FBI director and the House Homeland Security Committee Republicans have both issued warnings but without any specific counter-terrorism measures except possible bombings in Afghanistan in terrorist centers.
Hudson says: “In my tenure as a member of the FAA/TSA Aviation Security Advisory Committee ASAC (1997-2007), there was no discussion of possible suicide aviation hijackings that led to 9/11 only bombings.”
Airline passengers are not represented.
Currently, airline passengers in the United States are not represented effectively on the ASAC, the Aviation Security Advisory Committee.
Established in 1989 after a terrorist attack on Pan Am Flight 103, the Aviation Security Advisory Committee advises the TSA administrator on aviation security matters, including developing, refining, and implementing policies, programs, rulemaking, and security directives pertaining to aviation security.
The committee comprises individual members representing private sector organizations affected by aviation security requirements. The Aviation Security Stakeholder Participation Act of 2014, enacted on December 18, 2014, makes the committee permanent. The committee typically meets four times a year and holds a meeting open to the public once a year. Airline passengers and their advocate organizations are not represented.
The TSA Administrator for the Transportation Security Administration, a US security agency that was created after the 9/11 attacks to protect the transportation systems in the United States, has ignored or declined all meeting requests with airline passengers or public interest group representatives concerned with terrorism.
The FBI is charged with preventing not just investigations of terrorism but has pulled back from surveillance of Islamic organizations or Antifa.
Leaked reports show it is now focused on potential terrorism by anti-abortion Catholics, anti-transgender and anti-migrant activists, white nationalists, and MAGA Republican leaders.
Sky Marshals
According to whistleblowers, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has dismantled the Sky Marshals, which are now transferred to providing humanitarian assistance to migrants.
Meanwhile, there have been two assassination attempts on Donald Trump, and Iran is openly plotting the assassination of several US military and civilian officials from the prior Trump Administration.
