Congress set for airplane security hearing today

WASHINGTON – Eight years after the 9/11 attacks brought a new focus on security at airplane maintenance facilities, and six years after Congress first required action, the government hasn’t tightened its vigilance.

Concerned that terrorists might use a repair station to sabotage airliners, Congress in 2003 passed a law ordering the Transportation Security Administration to come up with security requirements for repair facilities, and gave the agency eight months to do it.

In 2007, after no rule had materialized, Congress again passed a law ordering TSA to put security requirements in place within one year. That deadline expired in August 2008.

This week, faced with a congressional hearing today on the issue, TSA posted a proposed rule to its Web site rather than wait for publication in the Federal Register. Officials acknowledged they wanted to get it out ahead of the hearing.

It’s not a done deal.

Industry and other interested parties will have 60 days to comment on the proposal once it’s published, and there is no telling when it will take effect. It’s not unusual for there to be a gap of months or years between the proposal of a regulation and issuance of a final rule.

Aviation maintenance and security experts who reviewed TSA’s proposal told The Associated Press that it prescribes the kind of security program common in industry and throughout government: A qualified security program chief, photo identification for employees, controlled access to airplanes and parts, a secure facility or property perimeter and background checks of employees.

“These [security] concerns are not new; they have long known been known by the government. Why it has taken so long for them to act defies logic,” said John Goglia, who was the first Federal Aviation Administration-certified mechanic to serve on the National Transportation Safety Board.

TSA at anytime could have copied the generally tight security programs in place in the European Union, he said.

So far there haven’t been any incidents involving U.S. airliners that have been tied to security lapses at repair stations, but safety experts said the lack of security standards remains a glaring concern.