SWAjet

April 19, 2005

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U.S. Commercial Airlines Vulnerable to Shoulder-Fired Missiles
Cato defense expert urges equipping airline fleet with counter-measures

WASHINGTON - Shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles (also known as MANPADS, man-portable air defense systems) are a threat to commercial aircraft in the United States, according to a study released today by the Cato Institute.

In "Flying the Unfriendly Skies: Defending against the Threat of Shoulder-Fired Missiles," Cato's director of defense policy studies Charles Peña warns that the economic consequences of a terrorist attack against just one commercial airliner could be devastating. Peña cites estimates suggesting that the economic loss to the country resulting from an attack could be as high as $70 billion.

"Even though an American airliner has not been attacked by a missile, the question may be when, not if, such an attack will happen," he writes. MANPADS are easily bought on the black market and there have already been 29 terrorist attacks using such missiles against civil aircraft overseas resulting in more than five hundred deaths.

"If a shoulder-fired missile is used to attack a passenger aircraft -- even if the attack is unsuccessful -- it may be much more difficult to convince the public that it is safe to fly," he states. "Without active countermeasures, aircraft would still be defenseless against a MANPADS attack."

Peña argues that the U.S. government should cancel unnecessary weapon systems such as the F-22, F/A-18E/F, and V-22 jet fighters, and the Virginia-class submarine, saving the Department of Defense $15 to $30 billion. Of those savings $11 billion -- less than one-half of one percent of the federal budget -- could be used to outfit the entire U.S. commercial airline fleet with countermeasures to defend against shoulder-fired missiles.

Policy Analysis no. 541: http://www.cato.org/pub_display.php?pub_id=3734

Contact:
Charles Peña, Director of Defense Policy Studies, cpena@cato.org
Holiday Dmitri, Senior Media Relations Manager, 202-218-4613, hdmitri@cato.org
Evans Pierre, Director of Broadcasting, 202-789-5204, epierre@cato.org

WatchThis!

Seems like there were some countermeasure testing contracts awarded about 7-8 months ago, anyone know what became those?

re: the article above, this guy will be branded as an alarmist until the first jet goes down due to a MANPAD. The administration will deny that a threat exsisted, and redirect fear of flying with more news of how Avian Flu is the "real" danger. Of course it will be a PR masterpiece to convince the traveling public that Bird Flu doesn't travel on jets. I can hear it now, "if you don't buy a full fare airline ticket, then YOU are the terrorist".

5 years after 9/11, we'll have Bird Flu instead of SARS, MANPADS instead of Jihadists on the plane, and housing market bubble bursting instead of the tech bubble.

When will the madness end???

PS. Have a Nice Day

Sir James

It's depressing to think about it, but one attempt at using a shoulder-fired missile against an American airliner could cripple this industry.

And were that aircraft be struck like the DHL plane in Baghdad, ... well just imagine the public's panic. My job is one crazy man's success away.