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Thursday, October 31, 2002 - Web posted at 10:25:35 GMT September 11 scenario 'not possible in Namibia' HUGH ELLISTHE Chief Executive of the Namibia Airports Company says there is no chance of a 9/11-type event happening in Namibia. |
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Tukondjelanee Nghihalua said yesterday the drive to upgrade security at Namibia's airports had begun even before September 11 2001, when hijacked planes in the United States were used to ram into the World Trade Center in New York and the Pentagon in Washington. "We got a loan worth N$15 million to upgrade the main airports, and much of this was spent on security," he told reporters at a press conference yesterday. He said new X-ray machines were bought and installed this year, costing between N$400 000 and N$185 000 each. In addition, the NAC had received a sponsorship worth N$8 million from America's Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) to buy more x-ray equipment and metal detectors. They were also about to implement a system, common in major international airports, where baggage was automatically offloaded if the owner of a certain bag did not board his or her flight. Further, they had tightened access control at smaller airports such as Eros. "You had far to many gates - aircraft operators were loading passengers into aircraft directly from the hangars," Nghihalua said of the situation a few years ago. He said an FAA delegation visited Namibia recently and had been satisfied with the level of security at the country's airports. |
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