Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Security at BIAP to be addressed at Aviation Security Middle East conference
International, Conference
(BI-ME) - Delegates at a new aviation security conference taking place in Dubai next month will hear how the security situation at Baghdad International Airport, one of the world’s most dangerous aviation environments, has been dramatically improved in just three years. Dale Davis, Managing Director of Global Strategies Group (Middle East), will describe the measures introduced by his company since it took over security at the airport in 2004. Today 540 flights take off each month, compared with virtually zero three years ago, and over 40,000 vehicles enter the airport perimeter.
Davis is speaking at the Aviation Security Middle East conference, organised by Streamline Marketing Group, which takes place for the first time on 30 May. The conference runs alongside the annual Airport Show running from 28-30 May 2007 at the Airport Expo Dubai. Speakers will include aviation security chiefs, specialists and consultants from across Europe, India, Middle East and the US.
The presentation on Baghdad International Airport will outline how Global Strategies Group secured an airport heavily exposed to threat, to enable uninterrupted trade and travel, safeguard passengers, crew, staff and cargo and upgrade the security level, achieving International Civil Aviation Organisation standards. A key part of the company’s plan is the training and development of local Iraqi personnel and currently 450 Iraqis are working on the project.
Other speakers at the conference will include Malcolm Nance, Director of Special Readiness Services International (SRSI) a Washington DC-based counter-terrorism consultancy. He will highlight the vulnerabilities of airports, aircraft and passengers to a wide range of catastrophic terrorist tactics implemented before the aircraft leave the ground. The latest technologies for passenger screening, profiling and in-hold baggage screening will also be discussed by a panel of international aviation security experts.
Davis is speaking at the Aviation Security Middle East conference, organised by Streamline Marketing Group, which takes place for the first time on 30 May. The conference runs alongside the annual Airport Show running from 28-30 May 2007 at the Airport Expo Dubai. Speakers will include aviation security chiefs, specialists and consultants from across Europe, India, Middle East and the US.
The presentation on Baghdad International Airport will outline how Global Strategies Group secured an airport heavily exposed to threat, to enable uninterrupted trade and travel, safeguard passengers, crew, staff and cargo and upgrade the security level, achieving International Civil Aviation Organisation standards. A key part of the company’s plan is the training and development of local Iraqi personnel and currently 450 Iraqis are working on the project.
Other speakers at the conference will include Malcolm Nance, Director of Special Readiness Services International (SRSI) a Washington DC-based counter-terrorism consultancy. He will highlight the vulnerabilities of airports, aircraft and passengers to a wide range of catastrophic terrorist tactics implemented before the aircraft leave the ground. The latest technologies for passenger screening, profiling and in-hold baggage screening will also be discussed by a panel of international aviation security experts.
Labels: Aviation Security Middle East conference, Baghdad International Airport, BIAP, Dale Davis, Global Strategies Group
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
BIAP-issued visas non-valid for foreign reporters
Travel
(Iraq Slogger) The Iraqi government is deporting non-Iraqi journalists who show up at the Baghdad International Airport (BIAP) without a valid visa for entry. Several have been turned away and put on the next flight out in recent days. Previously, foreign journalists with a letter from their news organization or from the Iraqi Foreign Ministry were able to snag a visa on arrival at the Baghdad airport.
Some journalists without a visa or a letter were able to buy a visa at BIAP at a backsheesh premium. Those days are over, if this edict from the Iraqi Foreign Ministry is enforced. There are creative ways for journalists to get into the country without a visa. Foreigners arriving in Erbil -- there are direct flights from Europe and neighboring countries -- do not require a visa. From Erbil, flying to Baghdad is a cinch, and no visa is needed or checked for those on domestic Iraq flights. But those flying into Erbil must fly out of Erbil unless you want a hassle at the Baghdad airport. Another alternative is to fly into Iraq with US military forces as part of an embeded mission.
Some journalists without a visa or a letter were able to buy a visa at BIAP at a backsheesh premium. Those days are over, if this edict from the Iraqi Foreign Ministry is enforced. There are creative ways for journalists to get into the country without a visa. Foreigners arriving in Erbil -- there are direct flights from Europe and neighboring countries -- do not require a visa. From Erbil, flying to Baghdad is a cinch, and no visa is needed or checked for those on domestic Iraq flights. But those flying into Erbil must fly out of Erbil unless you want a hassle at the Baghdad airport. Another alternative is to fly into Iraq with US military forces as part of an embeded mission.
More information on Iraq's Ministry of Foreign Affairs site: http://www.mofa.gov.iq/english/news/display.aspx?NewsID=2997
Labels: BIAP, Iraq, press, visas
Saturday, March 10, 2007
Commercial flights between BIAP and Kuwait City
Travel
(Stars and Stripes) An American-owned aviation company is offering direct commercial flights between Kuwait City and the military side of Baghdad International Airport (BIAP), officials announced this week. Gryphon Airlines, a freight and charter firm headquartered in Vienna, Va., flew its first civilian charter from Kuwait to Baghdad on Feb. 25, and now offers the service three days per week.
Earl Gibbs, the president and CEO of the company said in a news release that the firm is employing both aviation industry and military veterans to fly, staff and service the routes. The Gryphon flights are open to “all personnel holding authorization to enter and transit Sather Air Force Base” at BIAP, the company said in its news release. Gryphon touts its service as a way for people to travel directly from the U.S. military complex to the commercial Kuwait City airport, then on to Europe or the United States.
For example, a traveler can get on a 9:15 p.m. flight from Baghdad, then catch a connection and be in Washington, D.C., by 6:30 a.m. on a long-haul carrier. According to booking information on the company’s Web site, a nonrefundable ticket for the flights costs $550. A government rate is available, but that price was not on the bookings site. Most of the government-rate tickets are sold out for weeks in advance, according to the online booking system.
The flights are on ATR 72 aircraft, officials said. That airframe is French-built and can seat up to 72 passengers, according to information on its manufacturer’s Web site. Gryphon is not new to flying in Iraq. According to company officials, it already flies to cities including Balad and Mosul, along with flights to Kabul and Kandahar in Afghanistan. Gryphon is partnering with Swiftair, another air transport company, to run the Iraq service. http://www.flygryphon.com/
Labels: BIAP, flights, Gryphon Airlines, Swiftair
Thursday, March 08, 2007
Mortar strikes main BIAP terminal
Security
(Reuters) Four mortar rounds crashed into the heavily fortified Baghdad International Airport compound on Thursday, including one which struck the main terminal, but there were no casualties, security sources said. “Nobody was hurt, two of them landed in an empty area but one of the mortars hit the seventh floor,” a security source speaking to Reuters from the airport said.
Attacks on the large airport compound are fairly common but rarely does a mortar round land within the direct vicinity of the terminal building. Flying out of Iraq offers a relatively safe journey for travellers compared to insecure roads through western Iraq to Jordan or Syria. The airport, in Baghdad’s southwestern outskirts, is part of a heavily fortified area that also includes a large US military base.
Attacks on the large airport compound are fairly common but rarely does a mortar round land within the direct vicinity of the terminal building. Flying out of Iraq offers a relatively safe journey for travellers compared to insecure roads through western Iraq to Jordan or Syria. The airport, in Baghdad’s southwestern outskirts, is part of a heavily fortified area that also includes a large US military base.
Labels: Baghdad International Airport, BIAP, mortar rounds
