1. AVIATION CRITICAL INFRASTRUCTURE, AIRPORTS & CATASTROPHES
Jim Smith, PhD, P.E. American Public University System Smith-Woolwine Associates, Inc.
American Public University System | Educating Those Who Serve

2. Acronyms & abbreviations
AAR: After Action Review
ACI: aviation critical infrastructure
CBRNE: chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, and (high) explosive
CI: critical infrastructure
COB: continuity of business
COG: continuity of government
COOP: continuity of operations
DHS: U.S. Department of Homeland Security
DOD: U.S. Department of Defense
EDM: emergency and disaster managemetn
EMA: emergency management agency
EOC: emergency operations center
FAA: Federal Aviation Administration
HSPD: Homeland Security Presidential Directive
IAP: incident action plan
ICS: Incident Command System
IT: information technology
MAC: multiagency coordination entity
MANPAD: man-portable air defense systems
NIMS: National Incident Management System
SARS: severe acute respiratory syndrome
TSA: Transportation Security Administration
American Public University System | Educating Those Who Serve

3. Critical infrastructure
A system that is essential for national survival or economic survival
Examples
Highways
Electrical generation and transmission
Dams and levees
Highways and bridges
Aviation system

4. Aviation critical infrastructure
One of 18 DHS CI sectors or 17 ASCE categories
Comprises
Airports
Airlines and planes
Air cargo companies and planes
General aviation
Military aviation including mobility
FAA
Air traffic control system
Security of system
Intermodal connections to other critical infrastructures
Skilled personnel

5. Key events 9/11/2001 for intentional incidents 2003 SARS epidemic
Aug-Sept 2005 Katrina for natural disasters
All three have led to changes in airport structures,
policies, procedures, operations,
organizations, and defenses.

6. Gander on 9/12

7. Key terms Event – a planned happening
Incident – an unplanned or unscheduled happening
Disaster – an event or incident that causes severe damage but can be handled by emergency responders with mutual aid
Catastrophe – a disaster that overwhelms the capabilities of the community or region

8. What sort of catastrophes?
Not limited to aviation-related disasters
Natural disasters
Accidents
Pandemics
Civil disturbances
Terrorism
War and civil war

9. Natural disaster threats
Floods
Hurricanes, typhoons, cyclones, tornadoes, windstorms
Earthquakes
Landslides
Volcanoes and ash clouds
Wildfires
Blizzards and ice storms
Tsunamis

10. Accidents Crashes Industrial accidents Infrastructure failure
Mechanical failure
Human error

11. Pandemics SARS Bird flu Swine flu Potential bioterrorism agents
Converge with terrorism incidents

12. Civil disturbances Riots Strikes Demonstrations Boycotts
Employee sabotage

13. Terrorism CBRNE attacks MANPAD Hostages Hijacking Psychological Cyber
Chemical - sarin
Biological - anthrax
Radiological- BA flights London-Moscow 2005
Nuclear
Explosive – Glasgow, Pan Am 103, Buncefield?
MANPAD
Hostages
Hijacking
Psychological
Cyber
Disinformation

14. War
War
Civil war

15. Why focus on airports?
They are essential to receiving or sending aid in disasters and catastrophes.
As fixed assets, they are vulnerable, expensive to replace, and hard to repair if damaged.
Planes and people can be moved or sheltered; airports can’t.
Airports are iconic.
Airports have been targets of terrorists.
Airports have been used inappropriately by relief efforts following disasters.

16. Airport roles in disasters
Receiving aid
Dispatching aid
Quarantine (initial)
Helicopter base for rescue and reconn
Logistics hub – intermodal terminus
Communications – node or backup
Backup EOC
Security area

17. Inappropriate roles for airports
Command and control centers
Mobile hospitals
Quarantine (long-term)
Reunification centers
Temporary morgues
Logistics storage
Billeting
Pre-site off-airport alternatives

18. Functioning means Airport continuity of operations (COOP)
Airport continuity of business (COB)
COOP always applies to an airport, but COB is situationally sensitive to the scope and nature of the disaster.

19. Stages of emergency and disaster management
Prevention
Preparedness
Mitigation
Response
Recovery
Reconstruction

20. Sustainability Generally applied to normal range of activities
Applies to structural and organization designs that promote efficient and effective operations with minimum use of resources
Could be stretched to include activities outside the normal range => MITIGATION
All too often overlooks disasters

21. Resiliency
Ability of a structure, organization, or system to do at least ONE of the following:
to avoid damage => PREVENTION
to retain an acceptable but reduced level of functioning => MITIGATION
to return to an acceptable level of functioning after a disaster or catastrophe => MITIGATION & RECOVERY

22. It all starts locally
All disaster response starts locally, and the local flavor will persist no matter how much the response escalates to track the evolution of the incident.
If the locality involves an airport, the airport’s preparedness can condition the nature and outcomes of the response.

23. Do you have to wait 72 hours for help?
Under the National Response Framework and prior doctrines, the expectation is that localities—including airports—will have
to wait about 72 hours for
outside (federal) aid.

24. Local Emergency Services Specialized Regional Response Assets
EDM time spectrum
State
Private Sector
High
DoD (Title 10)
Federal Civilian
Required Capabilities and Resources
Interstate Compacts
Specialized Federal Assets (LD/HD)
Local Emergency Services
Specialized Regional Response Assets
Mutual Aid Agreements
Low
Pre-Event
First 12 Hours
12-48 Hours
48-96 Hours
30 Days

25. Cutting the 72-hour wait
Get airport designated as critical infrastructure/critical facilities list
Smart plans and strategies
Promoting self-help capabilities
Developing special response and recovery capabilities
Giving and receiving mutual help beyond mutual aid pacts – regional cooperation and coordination - DOGs

26. What’s a DOG Disaster Operations Group
SEADOG
WESTDOG
None yet in Midwest, New England, Middle Atlantic, Hawaii, and Pacific
Associated with EMAC and state EMAC coordinators

27. Airport Response – Ivan 2005
DAB
GPT

28. Airport Response – Katrina 2005
MSY

29. Gulfport and Katrina
“Our highway infrastructure had been destroyed, the Port had suffered catastrophic damages and the rail system was inoperable. Our airport was the primary source for receiving aid and materials. Without the airport’s quick turnaround, we would have been cut off from the world and the much needed assistance that we needed to survive.”
Brent Warr, Mayor, City of Gulfport

30. Airport Response at Lake Charles – Rita 2005
PHX
LCH

31. Airport Response at Beaumont-Port Arthur – Rita 2005
APA
SAN
BPT

32. Key concepts
Airports are even more critical in disasters and catastrophes.
Airports are critical infrastructure.
Airports must be protected from inappropriate uses.
Airport design (structural, organizational, policy, and defensive) should promote continuity of operations.

33. Telling quote
“In a disaster, an airport can substitute for almost anything else, but nothing can substitute for an airport.”
Walter White, MEM

34. Actions to protect airport COOP/COB
Structural
Policy
Organizational
Procedural
Defensive
These are highly cross-connected.

35. Structural (Physical facilities)
Redundancy on site
Back-up emergency operations center (EOC)
Alternative sites
Hardening
Hardened communications and IT
CBRNE prevention and mitigation
Perimeter control
Fuel system protection
Air traffic control system protection
Alternate utilities
Interoperability standards

36. Special structural concerns
Design and construction to resist damage from multihazards
Rapid post-incident evaluation
Rapid post-incident repair
Communications
Alternative logistics, especially fuel and electricity
Shelter-in-place capabilities
Sustainment for essential employees
Documentation as-built and modified

37. EOC Nerve center for disaster operations
Functions, space, connectivity, and people
Supports and coordinates on-scene commanders operating under NIMS/ICS doctrines
Can play role in all phases of emergency and disaster management
Typically present at airports and at all levels of government and in corporations
May go by other names but functions are the same
MAC = multiagency coordination entity, sort of a super-EOC

38. Policy
Subordination of airport asset to local, regional, or national incident management systems CONTROVERSIAL
COOP/COB paramount strategic objective
Pre-planned responses to strategic threats
Pre-arrangements with agencies and surrounding business community to help ensure COOP
Pro-mitigation orientation
Laws controlling demonstrations and trespass
Proactive policing policies
Funding of preparedness and mitigation measures

39. Organizational Full NIMS/ICS implementation
Joint training, drilling, and exercising
Within airport
With surrounding agencies
With DOD and other federal agencies
Avoidance of insurance blackballing
Worker protection
Worker morale
Internal security
Standards
Backup organizational units, especially EOC

40. Operational Preparedness Alternative modes of transport
Internal security
Interoperability
Standards
Pre-siting
Staging
Pull, not push: hold logistics at intermediate airports rather than jamming up airport(s) in the middle of the disaster
Off-site logistic support and storage
Avoidance of non-essential uses
Training, drilling, and exercising
Standards – national and international

41. Access and credentialing
Access to airfield by mutual aid and other outside responders is a difficult issue.
Credentialing of responders for on-airport action is needed.
Flexibility is needed for extreme cases.

42. Defensive Intelligence Counterterrorism Active defense Passive defense
SAM exclusion
Flight paths
Minimize target value
Time flexibility

43. Simultaneous threats
Antagonists could possibly apply terrorism, war, or violent acts to take advantage of disruption due to natural disaster, accident, or pandemic.

44. Distant catastrophes
Airports may be key assets in sending aid to distant disasters or catastrophes.
Sending aid can stress airports and complicate normal COB/COOP.
Distant catastrophes may send refugees and injured persons to an airport.

45. Newest challenge
Airports, especially international gateway airports like ATL, BWI, PHL, and MSP, are being asked to establish facilities, plans and procedures for Emergency Repatriation Centers to receive and support U.S. citizens repatriated from overseas crises.

46. Conclusions
Disaster management at airports involves airports internally and airports in a community context
Coordination and cooperation among airports is needed
Strong airport-emergency management agency cooperation and coordination is cost-effective mitigation against all hazards
Preparedness against multihazards works for natural disasters, pandemics, and manmade threats
Other components of aviation critical infrastructure have parallel concerns and needs for preparedness

47. Last word
“In a disaster, an airport can substitute for almost anything else, but nothing can substitute for an airport.”
But nothing matters unless the airport and its functions have been protected or restored.

48. Resources for further study
Building sound emergency management into airports. Smith, J. F., Waggoner, S. S., & Hall, G. (2007). IATC 2007 Proceedings,
Memphis Airport as a model for disaster response. Smith, J. F., Waggoner, S. S., & Hall, G. (2007). Crisis Response Journal 3(3),
Protecting airport functionality during disaster responses: Natural disasters, accidents, and pandemics. Smith, J. F., Waggoner, S. S., Rabjohn, A., & Bachar, A. (2007). J. Emergency Mgt. 5(6),
Protecting airport functionality during disaster responses: Terrorism, war, civil war, and riots. Smith, J. F., Waggoner, S. S., Rabjohn, A., & Bachar, A. (2008a). J. Emergency Mgt., 6(3),
Protecting airport functionality during disaster responses: Solutions. Smith, J. F., Waggoner, S. S., Rabjohn, A., & Bachar, A. (2008b). J. Emergency Mgt., 6(4),
Maintaining airport continuity of business and operations during disaster response: the role of command and control relationships with emergency management agencies. Smith, J. F. (2008). J. Bus. Continuity & Emerg. Planning, 3(1).