Joint US-PH airport security assessment may be in the works

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Airport security assessment meeting
Office for Transport Security Administrator Raul Del Rosario (center) with US Transportation Security Administration inspectors during a courtesy visit on March 28. Photo from OTS.
  • The US Transportation Security Administration expressed intent in conducting another security assessment of Philippine airports and US-bound carriers this year with local aviation authorities
  • The joint assessment aims to ensure adequate civil aviation security measures are implemented in line with the Convention on International Civil Aviation

A joint security assessment of Philippine airports and United States-bound carriers by the US Transportation Security Administration (TSA) and Philippine aviation authorities may be in the works this year.

TSA expressed intent to conduct the joint assessment during a courtesy call on the Office of Transportation Security on March 28, according to OTS in a statement.

The agency said the activity aims to ensure adequate civil aviation security measures are implemented in line with standards set forth in Annex 17 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation, also known as the Chicago Convention, and with requirements of the US TSA for all flights going to the US.

Annex 17, or the Standards and Recommended Practices for international civil aviation, provides procedures and guidance for the civil aviation industry against acts of unlawful interference.

“We expect that the Philippines would reap more benefits from this forthcoming joint security assessment than it ever had years ago. From this activity, we expect stronger collaboration to ultimately improve the overall security of Philippine civil aviation,” OTS administrator Raul Del Rosario said in a statement.

Del Rosario noted that transport agencies and airport authorities have been working together for the past years to “ensure consistent implementation of security measures to prevent acts of unlawful interference” and has been coupled with improvements on security technologies as well as in security culture.

The TSA and OTS regularly conduct security assessment of aviation security in the Philippines. The security assessment includes airports and airline carriers servicing passengers and cargoes to the US, mail, and catering operations.

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