SOURCE: International Institute for Counter-Terrorism

A 2016 study by the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism presents emerging trends within modern day Aviation Terrorism.  To summarize the reports findings, four specific points can be highlighted as important for personnel who work in the Aviation Industry:

(1) Violent Extremist Organizations (VEOs) have, and will continue, to view the aviation industry as an attractive target.

(2) Recent successful attacks against the Aviation Industry, such as the 2015 a Russian Airbus bombing in Egypt, encourage VEOs to continue their attempts to carry out violent attacks against aviation targets.

(3) VEOs continue to attempt to utilize Aviation Industry employees to both facilitate and conduct attacks against aviation targets, such as airplanes or airport facilities.

(4) Tactical and Technical knowledge gained by members of VEOs during their time in conflict zones- such as Iraq or Yemen- enable radicalized individuals and groups to apply new tactics, techniques, and procedures to exploit vulnerabilities in aviation security structures in order to perpetrate acts of violence.

Regarding Point #4, specific examples of aviation terror tactics which may pose a threat in the immediate future to the industry discussed by the report are:

– Missiles and Rockets capable of attacking both in-flight aircraft and on-ground facilities/personnel

– The use of drones to both gather intelligence on aviation facilities and to be used as carriers of explosives in order to down in-flight aircraft upon their descent to land.

– The use of computer-enabled flight simulators to train extremists on how to operate and control an aircraft during the instances of hijacking.

– The use of high-powered lasers to temporarily blind pilots while in-flight.