The security and efficiency of the air transportation infrastructure are of paramount significance to the social and economic wellbeing of the nation. This is because air travel is still the only truly global network of transportation that connects places and people, regardless of where they reside. In the United States alone, there are more than 16 million flight travels per annum, which transports approximately 1 billion passengers as well as 42 billion pounds of cargo each year (Tonar and Talton, 2019). However, when it pertains to airport security, the TSA has continuously been criticized for its lack of efficiency as research by the Department of Homeland Security depicted that the TSA screeners failed to detect weapons, explosives, and drugs nearly 80% of the time (Inserra, 2017). Besides, in 2015, the TSA failed the tests by a larger margin of more than 95%, thus showcasing incompetency (Inserra, 2017). Therefore, there is a great necessity for the privatization of security in airports.
The privatization process would be highly beneficial since private screening services are capable of providing superior security services at a lower price, and this is attained via the creation of accountability, competition, as well as incentives (Why Privatizing Airport Security is Good for American Taxpayers and Their Security, 2019). The primary issue with the current model of the TSA is the conflict of interest created via self-regulation as it currently operates as both a security provider as well as a regulator.
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By adopting the privatization models of Europe and Canada, the security of airports can be significantly improved as governments spend considerably less, while still managing to meet the international standards of aviation. These regions have depicted that privately-hired security teams can efficiently manage personnel compared to the government and still be capable of making profits. Similarly, the privatization of security would enable the TSA to embark purely on regulation and oversight, and this enables efficiency. Therefore, the privatization of airport security has the potential to increase the safety of travel, save costs significantly, and increase airport efficiency and is thus the way forward for airport security, especially in regards to the preparedness for future threats to civil aviation security.
References
Inserra, D. (2017). The TSA Is A Disastrous Failure and Should Be Privatized. Retrieved 4 June 2020, from https://www.newsweek.com/tsa-disastrous-failure-and-should-be-privatized-718370
Tonar, R., & Talton, R. (20 19 ). Is the TSA Really Necessary? Retrieved 4 June 2020, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/ellistalton/2019/01/28/is-the-tsa-really-necessary/#57151e1425e0
Why Privatizing Airport Security Is Good for American Taxpayers and Their Security. (2019). Retrieved 4 June 2020, from https://www.heritage.org/transportation/commentary/why-privatizing-airport-security-good-american-taxpayers-and-their#:~:text=There%20are%20multiple%20reasons%20why,would%20be%20beneficial%20for%20security.
