Yuletide Secure and Safe Flying in the USA

      As you wait in line at crowded US airports remember the reason you are getting screened by the TSA.  Evil people try to hijack and blow up airliners, and the bad guys like to try their attempts around Christmas and New Year.  Think of Pan Am Flight 103 and the notorious "Underwear Bomber."   Those TSA screeners are working under great pressure as screening is no easy task.

       You may wonder and be frustrated  by how many children, grandmothers, invalids and holiday pies are subjected to pat-downs or frisking.  "What jerks, Grandma can't be a terrorist!"  Actually, Grandmas could be an unknowing dupe for a terrorist plot; and many terrorist groups gladly use children.  There was one case in on April 17, 1986 when a Palestinian terrorist Nezar Hindawi packed a bomb into the carry-on bag of his pregnant Irish fiance, Anne Mary Murphy. The bomb was found by a very alert El Al security agent at London Heathrow.

        Then again, even supposedly knowledgeable and skilled journalists will carry on and incite rants on travel blogs and the like about the TSA infringing on rights against unreasonable searches.  Those types are being irresponsible.  Whether they are searched by government personnel or by airline personnel a host of US laws, international conventions, ICAO standards and airline security management systems - not to mention common sense - require that reasonable measures be taken to keep weapons and explosives off of aircraft.  That is why US courts have consistently upheld that such searches - applied to everybody - are "reasonable." Of course the current whine and nonsensical assertion that the TSA "has never stopped a terrorist" is ludicrous and maintained by those unschooled in aviation security and intelligence and law enforcement tradecraft.  (Sort of like saying the NYPD has never stopped a burglary. Think about it.) Of course, you can't prove that the TSA never stopped an act that didn't happen...yet in a recent week TSA screeners discovered 32 loaded firearms that passengers "forgot" were in their hand luggage.  (As a Canadian Customs Officer once remarked to me, only somebody from the US would "forget" they had a weapon in their baggage or trunk of their vehicle.)

         These TSA screeners are doing their best to handle lots of people and make flight secure and safe.  Speaking of safety, with the nasty weather we're experiencing over the Twelve Days of Christmas, don't get too upset at your airline for canceling your flight or flights.  If you are traveling in the Northern USA in Winter you need to plan and be prepared for adverse weather....Fact of life:   Prudent and competent pilots know the limitations of their aircraft and themselves and do not fly in severe weather.  Of course, a big portion of this problem is the system of hubs and spokes resulting from airline deregulation and "consolidation" (mergers, less point to point flights and fewer choices --- and higher fares in many markets) that gets totally paralyzed by bad weather.  Just as is the case with TSA screening, your airline is having you endure delays or cancellations for safety reasons.

          Of course, if you'd like to travel without the screening hassle or the snow cancellations, I'd say take the train, like those of us in the Snow Belt used to do.  Unfortunately, we Americans created Amtrak and then have lost the political and economic will to make it more than a Third World system - when we need a system of systems as Germany, Italy, Japan and China have.  That is the subject of another blog entry. Stay tuned and Happy Yuletide and New Year.

World Doesn't Come to an End but Amtrak Service Inaugurated Between Norfolk and New York

      The World did not come to an end on December 12th as some thought the Maya Calendar foretold (or is it December 21st) but for the first time in some 40 years a passenger train ran from Norfolk to New York and vice versa.  Governor Bob McConnell of Virginia, a staunch conservative Republican has not been infected with the ideology that subsidies for rail passenger service are somehow contrary to free enterprise and the needs of the public and economy (while subsidies for highways, trucking, and airlines are somehow desirable) and has backed this service as well as a service between New York and Lynchburg and increased service between New York and Richmond and Newport News.  Shortly after it was inaugurated it became apparent that the Lynchburg service was covering more than the Commonwealth's investment in it.

      Governor McDonnell has been aided by a "can do" attitude on the part of  Norfolk Southern's CEO Wick Moorman and his leadership team.  Norfolk Southern understands that passenger trains running on a freight railroad that do not interfere with its freight traffic reflect highly on the railroad.  The author has been told by other railroad executives that the only thing keeping the nation's freight carriers from further partnerships with Amtrak with name trains that would sometimes but not always involve some profit for the freight carrier is the issue of liability and insurance coverage.  (The main reason Amtrak was founded was the withdrawal of the mail subsidy from the railroads and taxation and other poliucies on the part of state and local governments.) 

      This is good news for citizens of Virginia and the Middle Atlantic States as these trains make it easy for those who prefer not to drive (including soon-to-be senior citizens such as myself); business people; tourists; and the public as a whole to travel without having to deal with highway congestion or the walk up air fares charged by the so-called regional airlines that are outs-sourced spokes of the major carriers hubs.  (Cheapest Washington-Norfolk next day purchase round trip out in the morning and back in the evening on Orbitz for a round trip on a US Airways - on an outsourced "commuter" aircraft - is $405.   Amtrak's standard non-discounted fare is $108 round trip.  As of now same day round trip service from Washington involves a train to Newport News with a connecting bus across Hampton Roads in the morning but same seat service on the way back, with it being possible for patrons from Norfolk to Washington to have same day service.)  

     
        As North Carolina, like Virginia,  is one of the forward leaning states when it comes to train travel, it is anticipated that the two states will ink North Carolina Rail and Virginia's subsidized Amtrak services to create a rail corridor from New York and New England through Washington and Richmond and the Research Triangle all the way to Charlotte.  Currently there is one daytime round trip from New York to Charlotte,  The Carolinian.  Amtrak's Crescent  passes through North Carolina in the wee hours of the morning.   This service is a positive "back to the future" way to travel as seen at left on the former Southern Pacific's Golden State Limited.   (Photo Courtesy of Classic Trains magazine.)    Modern Amtrak coaches offer similar amenities - air travelers today can merely dream of such spacious and comfortable seating in Economy Class.   Below left is the type of seating found in the Amtrak cars assigned to the new Norfolk route, similar to the Golden State Limited.

         Unfortunately, if you read the comment thread on this link to The Pilot  you'll see that there are a fair number of ideologues who are strongly opposed to any taxes going to transportation infrastructure other than roads.   Part of this is due to the politicization of  of passenger rail investments as a result of the anti-Obama wave after the 2008 election when the right wing seized on high and higher speed rail as Obama-associated initiatives and in which we saw some rather irational anti-passenger rail rampages in Wisconsin and Ohio based purely on Tea Party type ideology. For detailed discussions on the merits of passenger trains the National Association of Railroad Passengers (NARP) has excellent material available on its web site at   http://www.narprail.org/   .



http://hamptonroads.com/2012/12/amtrak-launches-service-morning-norfolk

Aviation Security in the Skies of The Star of Bethlehem

     For those of us who have worked in or engaged in diplomacy for the region it has been a tense and frustrating year for the Middle East.  It certainly has not been the best year overall for Middle East airlines.  Tourism to Egypt isn't exactly making a come back.  With much of the "Arab Spring" turning into an Arab "Time of Troubles" and as we enter the Christmas Season this year and approach the New Year of 2013 the skies of the Star of Bethlehem and over the lands of the Children of Abraham...where Jesus was born and lived, the Prophet Mohammad recited and preached and the City of David and Solomon, are all, as they have been for decades the center of strife.  Syria is in the midst of a tragic Civil War; Israel is under siege; Shia and Sunni are at odds; the President of Egypt is being called a New Pharaoh and Iran is seeking a nuclear arsenal.  However, even with Damascus' Airport all but closed, and crowds demonstrating in Tahrir Square there are bright spots on the Arabian Peninsula - prosperous and growing airlines and prosperous and thriving cities. 
     Etihad, Emirates and Qatar Airways, to name the main ones, are now contenders. (I hope to see comments from executives from airlines such as Oman Air, Saudi, Jazzera etc. to remember them!)  They are strategically located with their hubs in Doha, Abu Dhabi, Dubai on the Arabian Peninsula and central to connections to and from Europe, Central Asia, Africa, South America and the Far East and Australia.  The cities and countries they fly from and are based in are almost literally oases of peace and commerce.  As in real estate, these airlines are doing well because of the location, location, location  of their bases.  Their networks can funnel passengers from all over Europe and the Mediterranean and Africa beyond the Gulf Region eastward and vice versa.   (On a recent trip to South America I was amazed to see throngs of Argentine passengers boarding an Emirates flight to Sao Paulo and beyond.) Generally, these airlines and their countries are safe - and secure.  (Emirates is even a leader in Aviation Security training.)
      This, however, does not mean that those charged with the security of air transport in the region can be complacent.  One thing is certain - geography is not a static factor.  The GCC states and their airlines as now being in the major league crossroads of air commerce, much as Europe became in the 1960's and 70's and 80's face a wider spectrum of challenges.  In addition to the dangerous factions lurking on the periphery of the Arabian Peninsula, sectarian strife, the Israeli-Palestinian situation, rumblings in Central Asia, Aviation Security  (AVSEC) professionals concerned with the area, whether they are in Doha, Riyadh, Chicago, Islamabad, Moscow, Delhi, Canberra or Frankfurt now have to be very concerned about cybersecurity, cybercrime and cyberterrorism based in Nigeria or Russia or New York.  I won't speculate on the cyber horrors that integrated Safety Management Systems (SMS) and Security Management Systems (SeMS) will have to deal with in the area of flight operations for fear of giving the bad guys food for thought. 
      One thing is for sure, 2013 will continue to be full of challenges. AVSEC professionals based in the region have hopefully considered the effect of geopolitical strife on aviation prosperity in their region and hopefully have crisis management and recovery plans in place integrated with their national military and civil defense contingencies.  Instead of Icelandic volcanoes those interested in "macro"  AVSEC in the region need to think about conflict and missiles in the Straits of Hormuz.  At the micro level they need to be concerned with the same passenger facilitation issues that our United States TSA does.   God bless and keep those men and women of good will and all faiths and nationalities who are doing their best to keep our skies and travels safe whether it is for Christian pilgrims visiting the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem; Catholics the Vatican or Fatima, Moslem hajis making the Haj to Mecca, or Haddasah Ladies from Great Neck visiting Israel.

Port Destination Lectures: Go Ashore Securely

     You know when you go off on a cruise and the day before you go sailing into a port the ship's theater has a "Destination Lecture?"   Have you ever learned anything really worth while at one of these?  Now true, half the people going ashore aren't interested in anything but the "Three B's:" booze, beaches, and bargains, but some of us are interested in culture, history and keeping our wallets intact - not for deals and bargains but from pick pockets.  And then there are shore excursions, which to take?
      Well, usually, I have been disappointed. Now, full disclosure here, I'm a former Naval Intelligence Officer and a former civilian Defense Intelligence Analyst and have worked with all sorts of US and international law enforcement operations to keep out of harm's way.  So, I'm pretty demanding, curious and critical about knowing about my destination.  To be honest some rah-rah cruise social director's talk and hint about going to Joe the Beach Bum's Bargain Boutique and telling Joe that you (and 2,000 others...duh?)  that you deserve a bargain because Bob on the M.S. Gargantua doesn't cut the mustard with moi.  As for bargains...let me repeat the old intelligence officer's adage: "If it is too good to be true it is."   On my last Mediterranean Cruise I was appalled at both the delivery technique or lack thereof and the content and lack thereof of the so-called port lecturer who did little more than hand out maps - rather inadequate ones at that - and "recommend" jewelry shops and the like. 
      I was so moved that I wrote various people on the fine cruise line (really the cruise line is a class act and I sailed with them again) volunteering my services after my then approaching retirement, but was pretty well rebuffed.  In my view here the problem is similar to that we find in the airline industry - Customer Service and Security never meet.  As airlines have made avoidance of real customer contact an art form in the era of automatic check-in and ancillary fees to "experience" speaking with a reservations sales agent (good luck with that) it seems to me that cruise lines have excellent and competent law enforcement staff on board and fleet security offices but that there is little interplay with the ashore passenger experience  (other than screening passengers for booze when they return to the ship.) 
     One cruise line about a year or so ago dispatched a bus load of turistas, carrying valuables and passports, into bandit and insurgent infested countryside and was appalled when they got ambushed and robbed.   That incident was, in my opinion, beyond the pale.  Fleet security officers must in the course of their duties have liaison and cooperation with local law enforcement.  Of course, not the subject of this article, but related, your ship's security department is also responsible for the safety of the crew when they are ashore.
     My advice: Do your own due diligence.  Quiz your travel agent (as in the cruise specialty on line agency you deal with) and if they b.s. you or don't know demand answers.  Check State Department warnings and use on-line reviews such as Trip Advisor (Full Disclosure: Under a nomme de plume I'm a Senior Reviewer)  and do your advance reading.  Some lines such as Holland America have excellent destination lecturers - if other lines don't have real historians and the like delivering let it be known to your travel agent and on board officers.  Most importantly, if you have concerns about a destination, request advice from the Ship's Security Officer.  And again, do your research before going --- you don't have to be trained as an intelligence analyst to prepare yourself.

Growing Green Transportation by Rail and Air in the Carolinas

When I write or blog about transportation I try not only to focus on safety and security but also on cost and on the security of our environment as well as our quality of life.  Also I have as much pasion for trains as I do for planes --- and in future posts you'll even read of my other passion - ships.  I hate sitting in traffic and I hate strip malls and ugly urban areas. I also hate the airport rat race.   I'm very lucky in the Charlotte, North Carolina Area to have a good friend, Edna Chirico - a de facto family member and Godmother to our daughter Katherine -as a partner in my research and analysis of "Green" transportation alternatives for the Charlotte and Carolinas Region.  Edna is originally from Salem Oregon and the Pacific Northwest where she went to high school with my wife and was a formidable member with my wife on their high school debating team. (I never debate either of these women as I'll never engage in a battle of wits unarmed.) This article here outlines my views on passenger rail for the Carolinas - but could apply to other areas such as Ohio and Chicago-Minneapolis Corridor.    I'd like to make it clear that regional rail does not replace local service airlines and cannot replace the niche occupied by Part 135 air charters or corporate-owned business aircraft.   Here I'm not only outlining my personal views on transportation, but shamelessly putting in a plug for Edna Chirico's consulting and planning for sustainable transportation   (and also my own skills).   These views are obviously my own, and have not necessarily been integrated into any of Edna's consulting products. 

Edna Chirico, owner of Green Moose Consulting, www.greenmoose.net is proficient in the assessment of land use; environmental issues; and infrastructure analysis related for the most part to a 7-county area centered on Charlotte and to the Catawba Watershed in North and South Carolina. Edna provides consulting services to the development community and municipal/governmental community on a vast array of economic development and environmental focused topics.  She has extensive civic leadership experience as a Mecklenburg (Charlotte) County Commissioner from 1989-1994; a Marine Commissioner 2000-2004; and on Charlotte and Gaston Regional Chamber of Commerce Board of Advisors. She currently chairs the Charlotte Chamber University Chapter and is Secretary for the University City Partners, a municipal service district and Secretary of the newly established Catawba River District, a regional green branding and education initiative. Past accomplishments include past chair WTVI public television board, Charlotte Mecklenburg Park and Recreation Commission, Mecklenburg Capital Budget Advisory Board and Charlotte Small Business Advisory Board.  She is a graduate of the University of North Carolina Charlotte and has studied international business  Edna provides support and analysis in the form of regional, national and international market analysis, geospatial analysis, applied infrastructure analysis, and human terrain analysis.  She is a specialist in business development related to light rail and rail.  She also holds the coveted Certified Commercial Investment Member” designation which is an invaluable resource to the commercial real estate owner, investor, and user  and is among an elite corps of more than 9,000 professionals in the real estate, banking, finance, and economic professions who hold the CCIM designation.  In the practical aspects of the maritime and watershed realm, she is a skilled sailor, power boat handler, and is certified in SCUBA. On terra firma she enjoys hiking, horseback riding, and gardening.   In other words, she knows her stuff on regional planning and "Green Transportation."




Edna and me about to go observe train operations

 on CSX and look at the refurbished Piedmont & Northern

near Mount Holly, North Carolina 

  Now, I cannot stand "fads" and so much of the "Go Green" Movement in my cynical opinion is clichéd and a fad.  Not so with Edna.  Edna is a tough as nails businesswoman who leads in sustainable development because it makes for economically thriving communities, not merely because it is the right thing to do. Edna is not an air-conditioning and paper-pushing office type of environmentalist.  More often one finds her on a trail in the woods or at farmers market or on a bike. I have spent hours sweltering in the Carolina Sun alongside Edna as she pilots a boat around the Catawba Watershed enthusiastically pointing out environmental hazards and opportunities. 

As I left my US Federal Government career, emboldened by seeing quality trains on branch lines in Germany, Denmark, Italy, and Poland, and incited by researching the history of rail corridors in this country such as the C&O’s Pere Marquette streamliners across Michigan, and taking Aviation Safety and Security courses at George Washington University, I partnered with Edna's Green Moose Consulting firm as a consultant to urge that we go back to the future and regain the railroad – and, for that matter – the airline – inheritance that our economists, politicians, and we the public have squandered and wasted.

           

 As a proud product of the Empire State I never accepted that the trains that ran through Upstate New York in the pre-Amtrak Era should be no more.  These trains are hopefully not the objects of nostalgia but the wave of the future.  Amtrak and New York State have Empire Service between Buffalo and New York – it is the bare minimum of what was left when the Penn Central gave up the ghost and passed its trains to Amtrak.   Some things are actually better than they were in the Golden Age – take the former Erie Railroad’s New Jersey and New York – now New Jersey Transit’s Pascack Valley Line.  The line has been upgraded for two-way traffic seven days a week. 

Now that the economy has focused our attention on such things as how difficult it is to get from point A to point B; how hard it is to get around our communities and around our region and country we have a golden opportunity to better our way of life and produce jobs.   That is if our anti-subsidy and anti-rail ideologues will get out of the way.  Going back to the future and restoring these energy efficient and job-creating great trains will not take major money – we are talking millions not billions – and no major technology break-throughs are needed.  Communities and states around the country have shown the basics of what can be done.  But, there needs to be a coordinated effort.  Washington and Oregon, Michigan, North Carolina, California, and the states of the Northeast Corridor all get it, as does New York with its “Empire Corridor,” but we still have a long way to go.  Edna's Charlotte "gets it" as the citizenry constantly has supported light rail.

Unfortunately, it can be argued our country as a whole has gotten no leadership nationally for a comprehensive national transportation policy since Dwight Eisenhower, and even Ike’s vision focused on highways.  There have articles galore written in Trains magazine about “who killed the American Passenger Train?” and the culprits are many because local jurisdictions, states, private railroads, Wall Street, and the traveling public all played a part.  The same can be said about our once wonderful airline network.  Deregulation and corporate greed has played a role there too.  The “fix” for our passenger rail and air networks is to harmonize and coordinate them the way they should have been years ago through national policy.

Although deep in Southern Railway Green territory rather than the battleship grey of the New York Central’s “Great Steel Fleet,” Charlotte is a likely place to ponder ways of bringing back something like the Commodore’s Great Steel Fleet back in the case of a corridor to Atlanta and northward to the Northeast Corridor.   As a Certified Commercial Investment Manager and having served in local government I am interested in smart and “green” environmental stewardship when it comes to development projects and land brokerage, I have partnered with Edna to leverage and develop expertise and interest in such things as light rail, North Carolina Rail, and Amtrak.

As I'm a historian by academic training, I have been urging Edna and discussing with her and anybody in Charlotte who is interested that Green Transprortation planners such as those led and advised by Green Moose should be glancing back to the future looking at possibilities for old Piedmont and Northern lines; state and local partnerships between business groups and Amtrak, the freight railroads, and environmental associations.  Again, North Carolina is one of those states that just seems to “get it” when it comes to trains, and is making incremental steps to bringing civilized travel alternatives to its citizens.  Charlotte, one of the most desirable and habitable cities in the South has started a light rail system that is very popular with the citizenry despite efforts to curb it by those ideologues opposed to light rail.

           

Hopefully, those of us that remember the way it was in the Classic Age of Railroads and the Golden Age of Aviation when it came to customer service, common sense alternatives (the train or the plane), travel in comfort, and the joy of travel will be able to provide leadership out of this fine mess our oil companies, corporate investors, and MBAs with no experience in transportation have gotten us all into.  (Sorry you guys with MBA's; railroad executives have constantly told me that you need lots of practical experience working on track; operating a locomotive and dispatching trains before you can be let loose to manage or plan anything on a railroad.  Some will argue the same for airlines.)   

Green Moose Consulting has been active in promoting the concept of “green” or ecologically and environmentally friendly development.  The firm’s ecotourism and development project for the River District, Merchandise Mart, and Whitewater Center in the West County (Mecklenburg) area is an example of this concept.  In a nutshell, this type of responsible and environmentally responsible development includes affordable and tree-surrounded housing close to schools, services, and other public facilities; walking paths; bicycle ways and the close proximity of housing and service-oriented business. All those are part of this concept.  However, this concept – which now includes economic stimulus - cannot work and flourish at the macro level – that is at the state and regional - and even national level - without effective comprehensive national level transportation planning that meshes locally with accessible, convenient, and portable public transportation.   That concept must include a national railroad passenger system meshed in closely with local and regional commuter and light rail and buses.  Additionally, a viable and rationalized national and international airline system of systems must feed into this transportation.   We see the need for the following system of systems:

·         Regional Rail Corridors, in the Carolinas in the form of North Carolina Rail needs to

be more robust, and as indicated in the Stimulus Package during the Great Recession is most conducive to “shovel ready” projects as you really don’t need a shovel – simply rolling stock, locomotives, and improvements to existing infrastructure – some of which in this area could double as commuter rail – and share it with the Class I freight railroads.  This is easier said than done, but is easily done if there is an operational will.  In the Carolinas the regional (and Amtrak, or Amtrak’s successor) rail system needs to be expanded.  Greater frequency of trains between Charlotte and the Research Triangle, with ongoing service as far as Washington and the Northeast Corridor needs to be implemented – we are already on that track and the train has left the station.    The Carolinian should – and is being - augmented by another frequency in each direction.  Furthermore, service from the Greater Charlotte Region should extend to Asheville in the West, and south and southwest to Columbia and Charleston and Atlanta with frequencies that will encourage people to use the train. 

The above mentioned light rail must be integrated with the rail infrastructure in that the transfer between trains and trolleys is easy and not time-consuming.  A resident of the River Center area should be able to walk from his or her residence to a light rail stop, and then transfer to a regional train, with connections throughout the national railroad network.  Additionally, both the light rail and the regional rail need to be easily connected to the airport, as in the case of Metra in St. Louis (for light rail) and BWI Airport at Baltimore. Rail Corridors with 100 and 200 mile per hour plus service such as European high speed rail services are like France’s TGV are often lauded here.  Such electric motor power ideally is better than diesel electric but we might consider that rapid implementation of service is required, as President-Elect Obama urged with all deliberate speed – we need intercity corridors now – and high speed often requires a new right of way.  Besides, isn’t 79 miles per hour fast enough?   Implementing a clone of the Washington to Boston Northeast Corridor or France’s TGV in a market such as Charlotte-Atlanta or Charlotte-Columbia-Charleston requires years of infrastructure planning and construction.  It isn’t that it can’t be done; it just should be done incrementally – and without overwhelming costs - starting with current track infrastructure; readily available motive power; and co-existing freight and passenger service.  We need not high speed but higher speed rail  with more frequencies.

A good “model” for us is Amtrak’s one Pere Marquette round trip between Chicago and Grand Rapids which would be easy to expand – and should be carried on to Detroit.  It provides a model for service in the Carolinas for trips such as Charlotte-Atlanta.   The C& O ran streamliners called Pere Marquettes streamliners that ran between Detroit and Grand Rapids and Grand Rapids and Chicago which provided fast and comfortable service for the following quarter of a century between 1946 and 1971.  In mid-Twentieth Century these diesel powered trains ran between Detroit and Grand Rapids in about two and a half hours – a speed that today would make them very competitive with air and highway “alternatives,” (if you want to consider getting to an airport two hours before departure and enduring one of our aircraft cattle cars an “alternative.”)  The Pere Marquettes between Chicago and Grand Rapids ran the route in about three hours.  This type of service provides low-hanging fruit that could be implemented quickly with investment at a quantum level lower than high speed rail.  This regional corridor service regional network could link the Greater Charlotte Area with the Research Triangle, the Carolina Beaches, Asheville, Knoxville, Chattanooga, Columbia, Charleston and Atlanta.

This is an area ripe for quick improvement - the Charlotte region is served by approximately two round trips of subsidized North Carolina railroad passenger service to the Research Triangle – the frequency of these trains leaves something to be desired.  Additionally, there is the state-subsidized Amtrak Carolinian up and back from New York – a train whose survivability was a very near thing due to various White House and Congressional fiscal shenanigans of an ideological nature regarding a national railroad network.  Then there is the Amtrak Crescent service from New Orleans and Atlanta and to and from Washington and New York – unfortunately it serves Charlotte in the wee hours of the morning in both directions.

·         Light rail should be a key component of our regional transportation.

It is cleaner, faster, and has greater capacity than bus lines.  Light rail does not require as intense and “heavy” an infrastructure of “heavy” rail such as Chicago’s CTA or “L,” or New York’s subways.  It can be relatively easily relocated – and more importantly, can use existing freight railroad right of ways.  For instance, modern versions of the 1950’s era Budd RDC or rail diesel car have already proven themselves and can provide a transition, if needed, to overhead “trolley” type catenaries.  A comprehensive and flexible light rail system connected with frequent local bus service enabling door-to-door public transportation for work, shopping, pleasure, and local tourism is essential.   This  integrated rail/light rail interchange with Amtrak’s and Carolina Rail hopefully expanded national network would aid in keeping cars off the roads; be conducive to environmentally wise development, restored historic districts, and would create jobs in infrastructure and associated commerce.

People will not get out of their cars locally, and certainly no tourists will leave their cars behind if they can’t easily go door-to-door locally, regionally, and nationally – even internationally by energy-saving, environmentally friendly, and comfortable public means of transportation.  Public transportation in the western industrialized democracies means just that: publicly-subsidized (not nationalized as in the case of socialist economies) and in some cases, publicly-owned or at least managed, transportation structure serving as an engine for business growth and commerce generated by the facile movement of people.  Our current subsidized and publicly-funded highway system does little of the above in an ecologically and habitable manner, and through a lack of national policy, our railroads and airline systems are not adequate either.  Along with this their needs to be a robust car rental infrastructure at major nodes so that tourists and businesspersons can get around at their destinations.  (This includes on-call availability at small airports so that corporate and air charter aircraft can get corporate decision-makers and technicians to and from business sites.)

Whether the Charlotte region is served by light rail, commuter rail, or by bus, if people are going to leave their cars at home, they need frequent public transportation – at the very least a system that feeds on satellite parking and rental cars or the like.  In turn, this local system must connect with regional and national rail on the surface, and an airline system as vibrant and efficient as that which we had in the 1950’s or 60’s.  Yes, you read correctly, we are talking about the system of some 30 and 40 years ago, before airline deregulation.

Lack of political will and vision nationally is bipartisan.  The Bush II administration rightfully noted as do most conservatives that Amtrak doesn’t pay for itself.  They’re right; it doesn’t, and it didn’t when Amtrak was established under the Republican administration of Richard Nixon, it was designed to save the U.S. railroads from the dead goose which had been killed for its golden egg (taxes) that hung around their collective neck in the form of the American Passenger train.  It was not designed to pay for itself, anymore than the highly admired railroads of Europe were designed to pay for themselves – look at the names of the successful European passenger railroads: SNCF – French National Railroad, Deutsche Bahn – German Railroads, SJB – Swedish Railways, etc. etc.  They are all subsidized, because the nature of the business is such that you can’t run such a system of systems at a profit.    The George W. Bush White House, which did not show vision with Amtrak, with former Secretary of Transportation Mineta, seemingly operating in a railroad passenger transportation Wonderland,  (talking about “empty long distance trains to nowhere” when empirical evidence proved the opposite, even more so with the spike in gas prices)  was not the only irresponsible one.  David Stockman tried to strangle Amtrak, and the Clinton Administration did little to promote rail infrastructure.  Senator Elizabeth Dole, when Transportation Secretary, was honest and admitted that states could not reasonably be expected to pick up the entire Amtrak burden.  The National Association of Railroad Passengers can present reams of data that show that the much maligned long-distance trains of America, while subsidized are actually heavily used, and that many communities depend upon them.  (For statistical evidence, go to www.narprail.org.)     “Transportation Policy” appears to have been an oxymoron at the national level until oil prices and the economic slowdown got our attention. 

If our ecotourism, and entities such as the River District and livable communities in the Catawba Watershed are going to thrive in the Charlotte Region, we are going to have to take positive coordinated measures at the local, regional, state, national, and even international levels to develop a really viable and ecologically friendly transportation system of systems here in the region.  These positive measures will take time, patience, and both private and public investment.  

Congress, the states, and our localities need to support a national railroad system of systems.  (In the case of North Carolina and Virginia I'm preaching to the choir here.  First of all, many Americans prefer to travel by surface.  Others, for certain religions, people with certain medical conditions, those who live in communities without airline and bus service, and those who merely want to travel easily under 1,000 miles without the hassle and discomfort of today’s flying, have to or prefer to travel by rail.  Regional systems such as Carolina rail need to be linked by a rationalized, well-maintained, and redundant Amtrak-like entity, that offers superior service,; doesn’t break-down; and involves minimal federal subsidies.  However, it must be kept in mind that passenger rail, like all forms of transportation, involves some form of national subsidy as envisioned by our Founding Fathers. (Remember “promote the general welfare” in the preamble to our Constitution?)   This concept has been supported by the mainstreams of both the Democratic and Republican parties throughout their history.  We also should not forget the security implications of needing a redundant national transportation system capable of operating under a massive cyber attack or disruption of the national air system.   And last, but not least, having an alternate means of comfortable national transportation might give pause to the already heavily subsidized operators of the flying bus routes resembling sardine cans.  If you think the taxpayers are paying a lot for Amtrak, take a look at the highway budget, the FAA air traffic control system, or subsidies to airports by local governments.

Passenger rail is not the only area of concern.  Our national airline system is, in the view of some, in dire trouble.  The so-called “legacy” airlines – the ones that made the United States the leader in world airline transport have been through bankruptcy or are foundering.  Pan American, the airline that flew the way across the Pacific with the Yankee Clipper flying boats and pioneered the jet age to Latin America and across the Atlantic is gone; so is Trans World Airlines.  United, American, and Delta all have been in trouble and American is in bankruptcy.  Our regional and feeder carriers such as North Carolina’s Piedmont, Mohawk, and North Central are gone.  We have a hodge-podge of carriers such as admirable Jet Blue to the flying cattle cars of Southwest or Spirit, all of which will get you to selected destinations relatively cheaply, but mostly uncomfortably.  Anybody who has flown coach on a United States airline can tell you of the almost Dickensonian horrors of “flying cattle cars.”

Most likely it will take you longer to fly from Charlotte to say, Detroit then it took you to go there by propeller plane, and in a lesser level of comfort as a Greyhound Bus in the 1950’s, and then it will be a hassle to get to say, Saginaw or Flint.  Prior to airline deregulation and the free for all of the free market and the throttling of the legacy carriers, you could easily fly from Syracuse, New York to Charlotte by stepping on Mohawk Airlines at Hancock Field in Syracuse and flying to Washington National where you would interline to Piedmont.  You would sit in a reasonably comfortable seat, often two by two across, and even have a meal en route.  Try that now.  Little regional jets don’t seem to fly in conditions once handled by Boeing 727s or by even Convair 240 prop planes.  Oh, the Public Relations types at the airlines might try to give you a spin on how great they are, but their systems only work under optimal conditions.  Additionally, the unrestrained market types will tell you that thousands more Americans are flying now than before deregulation, and that they are doing it cheaper than ever (adjusted for inflation and not counting baggage fees or a fee for sitting at a window or aisle.)  Those statistics might be correct, but any freshmen political science student can tell you that you can lie with statistics.  The venerable North Central Airlines gander no longer flies, his “goose having been cooked” by the merger of North Central into Republic then into Northwest and ultimately Delta, and the author contends that if it doesn’t fly like a duck it isn’t a duck.  The simple fact of the matter is that many will argue customer service is an oxymoron today in the U.S. aviation industry, and the U.S. public is incensed over cramped seats, long lines, horrible delays, and surly disservice.  When I complained about this situation to several retired airline executives in a professional forum, they told me that I had to “adjust my expectations.”  I retorted that I would – I want them back to where they were when I was a kid.

If our ecotourism, and entities such as the River District and livable communities in the Catawba Watershed are going to thrive in the Charlotte Region, we are going to have to take positive coordinated measures at the local, regional, state, national, and even international levels to develop a really viable and ecologically friendly transportation system of systems here in the region.  These positive measures will take time, patience, and both private and public investment.  

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Edna Chirico, CCIM

Why We Need Corporate Jets

     One of the bigger flubs during last week's US Presidential Debate was President Obama's derogatory comment about corporate jets - as if they are play things of the rich and the famous.  Executive aircraft in the United States fill a necessary niche that is required by corporate decision-makers and technical personnel.  They are not a luxury but a necessity.  In many cases there is no substitute for them.
     Since US airline deregulation in the late 1970's the government cut many subsidies for local service airlines.  It is no longer possible to do a "round robin" journey in a day from Syracuse to Watertown to Albany and back as one could back in the day on Mohawk.  Many small cities no longer have rail or train service.  In many ways our national passenger transportation network is dysfunctional. Other's such as Charlotte, North Carolina are "fortress hubs" of monopolistic carriers at that location - in the case of Charlotte US Airways - that charge incredibly high fares of walk up business travellers.  In many cases corporate or air taxi (FAA Part 135) aviation is the only reasonable and cost effective way to move teams and high-cost leaders and experts around this country.  They enable business to keep multiple locations open, thus providing local jobs.  Additionally, the General Aviation infrastructure - parts, maintenance, fuel, airports and so forth that support corporate aviationare additional job generators.  And corporate aviation does not compete with Airlines for America (A4A) members - it complements their business.

Fusion Centers Provide Vital Role in Transportation Security

http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/fusion-centers-defendedin-response-to-senate-report/2012/10/03/58841b38-0da2-11e2-a310-2363842b7057_story.html

This item by the Washington Post defends Homeland Security Intelligence Fusion Centers which link the 14 or so national level intelligence agencies with local and state law enforcement operations.   According to the Post Sen. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.), chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee, acknowledged in a statement that the centers have some problems."  However, he pointed out a recent Congressional critique's inside the Beltway bias by saying  the report focused too narrowly on intelligence going to federal officials in Washington and ignored broader benefits, including better information sharing with state law enforcement agencies.  As I've stated in an earlier Blog entry [today] under international law national governments are tasked with civil aviation security standards.  In the TransportationSecurity area, these Fusion Centers provide a required interface between organizations such as the FBI and CIA and the local, railroad, state and airport police around the US. 

According to the Washington Post - "Several law enforcement groups, including the International Association of Chiefs of Police, the National Sheriffs’ Association and the National Fusion Center Association, also said the report did not address the significant benefits that fusion centers provide to state, local and tribal law enforcement.

“Additionally, the report incorrectly asserts that a majority of the information or intelligence released by fusion centers is untimely, inaccurate and of little use. This assertion is false,” the groups said in a joint statement.  DHS spokesman Matt Chandler said that the report was “inaccurate and misleading” and that Senate investigators “refused to review relevant data,” including classified material."   Sounds like the usual political blowing of smoke on Capitol Hill in preparation for the election.

 

Terrorism Tradecraft: Basic Knowledge for doing a Terrorism Threat Assessment

"Terrorism Tradecraft is republished with permission of Stratfor."   This item from the on-line strategic subscription-based intelligence group Stratfor is a digest of information that I used to teach in several courses on Homeland Security and Terrorism.  In the Aviation Security or AVSEC  realm, some of this theory, case studies and history are also treated in the excellent Aviation Security Courses that I am privileged to facilitate and instruct through the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Training and Development Institute. 

According to International Civil Aviation Law, threat assessments and risk analysis and aviation security measures in general are outlined in Annex 17 of the UN Agency International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).  National governments of signatory nations are required to provide security standards and governments share implementation of these standards through various authorities and organizations with airports and airlines - ultimately, however the airline is responsible for the safety and security of its passengers.   This fact on ultimate responsibility is the main reason on board jokes about security, hijacking or verbal disputes on rules with cabin crew are likely to have adverse consequences for unwary, ignorant or arrogant passengers.

Knowledge of Terrorism Tradecraft is also essential for those charged with protecting railroad systems - booth passenger and freight, cruise ships, public mass transit, ports, and increasingly hotels and resorts.   Part of my consulting is based on collaborating those so charged so that our means of travel will be safe,secure, and yes - comfortable.  Of course, you are part of that equation - you need to be aware of your surroundings and where you are going. 

I will be going over some of these issues in this blog, and of course, as a former travel agent, air charter employee, and government aviation, maritime and rail analyst will be offering my opinions on how to travel and fly right and how airlines especially can improve their customer service and their bottom line.  Stay tuned.

 

Read more: Terrorism Tradecraft | Stratfor

Low Cost Airlines Fly South

http://travel.nytimes.com/2012/09/16/travel/budget-airlines-fly-south.html?ref=travel&http://travel.nytimes.com/2012/09/16/travel/budget-airlines-fly-south.html?ref=travel&_r=0_r=0  Low Cost US Carriers are Heading South.  The Spirit model with its multiple means of "mugging" passengers for luggage, seat choices and itinerary changes will probably not be well-received south of the border.   Latin Americans, although increasingly web-connected, demand the availability of customer service through travel agencies and city ticket offices.  They also will not tolerate the bait and switch and shell games of the Spirit Model.  In Brazil, for example Azul Linhas Aereas, a LCC offers customer service comparable to Jet Blue.  That is not a coincidence, JetBlue founder David Neeleman also founded Azul (which means "blue" in Portuguese.)  Gol Linhas Aereas Inteligentes has expanded its presence in customer service kiosks in the Sao Paulo subway system and in other off airport locations.  LAN, Aerolineas Argentinas, TAM and Panama's COPA all offer customer service superior to what you might find on US network carriers. In Argentina, Aerolineas Argentinas and its affiliate Austral has undergone a renaissance of sorts with new airplanes, better maintenance, improved reliability and better customer service since it was renationalized in 2009.  Competitor on some routes LAN Argentina, part of the LATAM Airline Group also offers excellent service and deals.  Both offer great deals for those flying long hauls from the US to Argentina.  Aerolineas is part of the Skyteam Alliance and LAN is part of the Oneworld Alliance.  Both offer excellent reservations call center assistance either in English or in Spanish.  On a recent trip to Argentina I had to make several changes to my Aerolineas itinerary and the call center did its best to help me avoid change charges. 

Stormy Skies in the Middle East - and Beyond

     The Arab Spring is turning into the Arab Summer with storm clouds and sand storms across the region from the Maghreb to the Levant.  What has become a civil war in Syria has been joined by strife in Libya and Anti-Western unrest in Egypt.  Americans need to get one thing straight:  The attack on the consulate in Benghazi and the murder of the Ambassador and other three Americans does not represent any swell of Libyan government or indeed popular hatred of the US.  The attack was a classic insurgent tactic to seek to discredit the moderate elected government and to drive a knife into the evolving relationship between Libyans and the US.  There were a lot of nasty people left in Libya after Qaddafi.  Similarly, the extremist demonstrations against the US Embassy in Egypt are in essence Egyptian civil strife with extremists having the same aims as those in Libya.  Despite the goal of extremists of restoring the Caliphate, the unrest in the region does not represent any unified Islamic attack on the West or the United States.  That being said, now is not the time to plan a vacation to see the Pyramids in Egypt or Roman ruins or beaches in Tunisia. 
     The events of the past week are another game changer at least for the region - and also beyond. Travel safety and awareness for airlines and their customers now requires a new set of threat assessment paradigms for airline security professionals.  The immediate, indeed long range, threat to civil aviation is changing.  US flag carriers especially will need to be more vigilant, not only in flights to the region when service normalizes but also in flights originating elsewhere such as Europe, Southeast Asia, and Subsaharan Africa.  The excellent Mideast carriers noted for their outstanding customer service such as Etihad, Emirates and Qatar will need to demonstrate to potentially timid US travellers that they are serious and vigilant about security.  (Note to travellers:They are.)  Security professionals are aware of that, but the average traveller might not be.   Airlines need to review their Safety Management Systems (SMS) and associated Security Management Systems (SeMS) to incorporate current threat assessments and awareness.  This is especially true as airlines automate more and more customer service (on some US airlines that will remain unnamed here almost an oxymoron) functions and avoid personal contact with passengers.  Sure, using online check-in and that kiosk might be convenient, but does it make you any safer or secure?
     Those contemplating or needing to travel to the Arab World should pay close attention to the State Department's web site www.state.gov  for travel advisories for the region.  Operators of business, air charter, and other corporate aircraft into and around the region need to pay close attention to their security support staff , and if they don't have security threat assessment support that is familiar with the region they need to obtain it quickly. There are some travellers - academics, journalists, and business travellers, for example, who will have to travel to the region - again they should check the State web site but also call the State Department directly...and confer with the embassy of the country they plan to visit.  Airlines need to be forthright and honest on their web sites about security issues.
     As stated above, the current situation represents "game change" in the region as long as there is civil strife - that is what this is, not a burst of Anti-Americanism.

    

Charlotte,North Carolina Leads Way with Freight Intermodal Facility at Airport. Will We See a Similar One for Passengers?

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/norfolk-southerns-new-charlotte-regional-intermodal-facility-will-support-growing-rail-traffic-and-less-crowded-highways-149840725.html

Charlotte is leading the way in an intermodal freight facility at Charlotte Douglas Airport (CLT).  The facility will enable transfers of freight containers between ocean-going, rail, and highway modes.  It isn't clear how the facility will interface with the airport and airlines and what security measures such as known shippers and TSA requirements will be dealt with.   Additionally, little has been said about CLT's dependence on highway transportation access for passengers.  As of yet there is no integrated light rail, regional North Carolina Rail norAmtrak facility at the airport.  Charlotte is only served with four Amtrak trains north-south per day, and two of them, the South and North bound Crescent Limited  - and the only rail passenger link to Atlanta pass through Charlotte in the wee hours of the morning.   CLT is also burdened by a near monopoly on the part of US Airways and its outsourced "regional" subsidiaries with astronomical fares - this extends to regional flights such as from Raleigh to Atlanta or Chattanooga via the CLT hub.

I'm Shocked! Shocked! 30 Years after De-regulation the US Airline Industry is getting less competitive and becoming monopolistic?

http://atwonline.com/international-aviation-regulation/news/white-paper-lists-aa-us-merger-competition-concerns-0807

White paper lists AA-US merger competition concerns:

According To Air Transport World's, Karen Walker, a merger of American Airlines (AA) and US Airways (US) could substantially reduce competition, leaving four majors controlling over 70% of the US domestic market, according to a white paper released Wednesday.

US has made clear its interest in pursuing a merger with AA, which is restructuring under Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, and AA CEO Tom Horton in July said it made sense to evaluate the possibility, but no formal process has begun (ATW Daily News, July 11).

In a jointly produced paper, the American Antitrust Institute (AAI) and Business Travel Coalition (BTC) say the merger could lead to the creation of a four powerful, closed airline systems that would be virtually impermeable to competition and could create a hostile environment for low-cost carriers (LCC) and regional airlines.

Is anybody really surprised at this.  As some observers prophesized de-regulation has resulted in less competition; loss of service to many communities; and travelers complain about shoddy customer service.  Most airlines have made lack of communication and contact with their customers an art form...and business travelers pay thousands of dollars to fly business class to avoid being stuffed like sardines into three by three 31 inch pitch seats, the risk of deep veinb thrombosis, and being bracketed by whining children. 

Is the air travel "bubble" about to burst in the USA?  Can A4A get its members to adopt better business practices?

Empire State's Capital loses more air service. Opportunities for Air Taxis, Charters, and Amtrak!

http://www.aviationpros.com/news/10755971/new-airline-for-albany-newark-flights?goback=%2Egde_2274517_member_143172623

Empire State's Capital loses more air service.

Colgan Air is ending service from Albany on Sept. 5, but United Airlines apparently has found a replacement. ExpressJet Airlines will take over Colgan's United Express flights between Albany International Airport and Newark...Colgan Air is not much of a loss...they have been plagued with safety issues. The replacement carrier, is not really United...it is an out-sourced so-called regional carrier that isn't really "regional" and some will argue has lower safety standards than the large carriers it contracts with. Travelers from the Albany area are now faced with a quandary if they need to fly to Europe out of JFK....although there are many flights on United out of EWR, links to JFK might be problematic. Upstate New York has been severely hampered since airline deregulation with the loss of Mohawk Airlines into the Allegheny and US Airways conglomerate. Apparently, for example, if a business person wishes to fly from Albany to Buffalo one must fly out to Chicago and connect back. The loss of local point-to-point routes on American, Eastern, and the like has made air travel extremely expensive and inconvenient for most centers in Upstate New York. So-called "regional airlines" such as ExpressJet are not in any way similar to the pre-1975 local service airlines such as Mohawk that actually served a region. In the absence of a successor to Mohawk, which ExpressJet is not, the Capital Region might be best served by expanded Amtrak Service to and from New York, Boston, and even Montreal to provide links to those international hubs. Air taxis can offer fares for business groups that are much more competitive than the fares airlines such as United, US Airways and even Southwest on sectors such as Albany-Elmira, and other destinations in the Northeast. Such operators are job generators and lend much to the economy.

Business Jet Sales Growth

http://www.flyingmag.com/news/jetnet-report-shows-slow-growth-bizjet-market

With the legacy airlines offering fewer point to point flights; and with connections through hubs that can cost thousands of dollars; and with itineraries that can be slower than the days of the DC-3, the future is looking brighter for bizjet operators, especially air taxis.  When it costs up to $2,000 to fly from Pittsburgh to Scranton via Charlotte (!!) on a small cramped aircraft for each leg hiring an air taxi could be pretty attractive!

Flying Lessons: Mayday on Air France Flight to Israel

Flying Lessons: Mayday on Air France Flight to Israel: It is easy to imagine the terror of the 130 people on board Air France Flight 2240 on Wednesday when flying at 28,000 feet, some passengers...

The Spirit of Bait and Switch

Today's Washington Post Travel Section has an excellent piece on Spirit Airlines setting an even lower common denominator in lousy customer service and bait and switches that border on a scam.  The unwary traveller quickly learns that the so-called low fare is so loaded with "Gotchas!" and ancillary fees that one very easily could end up paying more than on a non low cost carrier (LCC). 

This is even more evidence that the LCC's might fill a niche for those travellers who have been displaced by the demise of the bus system and maybe liners without steerage accommodations on overseas routes, but will never adequately replace the US's wonderful pre-deregulation airline network.

Airline lets you pick a seatmate using Facebook

Airline lets you pick a seatmate using Facebook

Does KLM care about Privacy and Security? This is unbelievable. This brain flatulence - best way one can describe it- by the lack of adult leadership at KLM is astounding. First off, I would bail out of any social network that published my seat assignment on an airliner. This is a blatant violation of privacy concerns. It also opens the door to all sorts of terrorist and criminal schemes.

Excuse Me...$25 to Make a Reservation?

United Airlines (and a few others) have decided to make lack of customer contact and service an art form.  You now have to pay $25 for the privilege of holding on the phone for 15 minutes if you are lucky and speaking to somebody who doesn't exactly have a great command of English - even if the web site instructs you to call reservations because your itinerary is too complicated or you have a special need.    Worse yet, if you need to contact the airline over the weekend in Buenos Aires they have a telephone recording "inviting" you to call international long distance for the privilege of holding so you can speak to somebody in Manila.  Yet, we passengers put up with this...but United needs to know that internationally, at least we don't have to - we can fly the friendly skies of Lufthansa or Etihad or LAN where the passenger is still treated like a guest.