6.5 Aircraft Hardening

Research focuses on finding ways to protect against advanced terrorist threats, and developing methods to reduce aircraft vulnerability to internal explosions, electromagnetic high-energy signal interference, and man-portable air defense systems.

The Aviation Security Laboratory is conducting research to identify the minimum size explosive that can result in aircraft loss, and developing methods and techniques to reduce vulnerability to other outside means of attack. Research also seeks to identify practical security countermeasures for threats and to identify documented data on vulnerability to explosives.

Research is conducted to provide data packages in support of rule making, with the objective of increasing survivability of commercial aircraft against explosives and other advanced terrorist threats. Goals of the program are to identify methods of mitigating threats, for example through the use of hardened luggage containers, and to increase effectiveness and reduce costs of these methods through operational and technical assessments. The objects of the Aircraft Hardening Program are to reduce fatalities and decrease the catastrophic financial loss from an act of sabotage against an aircraft. Products developed as a result of aircraft hardening research include:

• Blast-resistant luggage container
• Research assessment of explosive-resistant units for narrow-body aircraft
• Research assessment on the feasibility of hardening aircraft overhead compartments
• Vulnerability report for all types of aircraft
• Joint FAA-Department of Defense report on vulnerability to man-portable air defense systems.

FAA POCs:
Paul Jankowski
609-485-4870
paul.jankowski@tc.faa.gov

Ken Hacker
609-485-4922
kenneth.hacker@tc.faa.gov