Craig Fuller, president and CEO of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, commented quickly on the June 18 release of a report by the Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security in which general aviation was declared a “limited and mostly hypothetical” threat to national security. Said Fuller:
“The report issued by Richard L. Skinner, Inspector General of the Department of Homeland Security, on general aviation security validates what the AOPA, the general aviation industry, and even the Transportation Security Administration have always contended – that the threat to national security posed by general aviation is ‘limited and mostly hypothetical,’ and that measures taken voluntarily by the industry are ‘positive and effective.’
“The report notes that while the threat is minimal, it is not non-existent and that constant vigilance must be maintained, which is why AOPA coordinated with the TSA to develop and implement the Airport Watch program. We have always done our part and will continue to do so. And we appreciate the recognition that our efforts have been effective.”