How Travel And Airport Security Changed After 9/11 - Essay Example

This paper is a critical analysis of some of the security changes that have been seen in the aviation industry since 9/11 and some of their effects on the industry (Morgan, 2002). Before September 11th, most of the airport security operations were provided by external private companies. These companies had to be contacted by the airlines or airports to carry out the screening of passengers. After the events however, most of the airports in the US adapted the transportation security administration to carry out the screening.

They had better plans for this and the first thing that they did was to install bulletproof cockpit doors that were locked and was only accessible to authorized personnel. These were one of the early changes that were made to the aircrafts to ensure that attacks to the US were minimized as much as possible. Before the attack, most airports had unsecure buildings that could provide access to criminals in case they planned an attack to the airports. Due to this, most airports had to change most of their doors to ensure that the doors were bulletproof and that the airport personnel were protected by bulletproof walls at all times.

During the attack, box-cutter knives which in most cases are not considered to be weapons were used. The criminals passed these knives through the airport security systems without any problem since the knives were not illegal and anyone could pass them through. Under the guidelines of the hazardous materials act, these knives were not illegal and were considered to be tools of trade. Screeners had a lot of confusion about these blades before the attack and in most occasions, they had no option but to allow most people to pass with the knives.

However, after the attack, there were rules that were put in place that prohibited any form of blade from passing through any airport. Knives and blades were therefore illegal and no one