PNNL

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) conducts AVSEC research and training for multiple U.S. government sponsors. This research covers historical threat materials, methods of attack, and emerging threats due to advances in technology. 

Through key collaboration and advanced on-site facilities, PNNL has developed passenger screening and explosives detection technology that appears in airports all over the world. These collaborations have allowed scientists and subject matter experts (SMEs) at PNNL to work jointly with international partners to enhance awareness and skills needed to detect and mitigate diverse aviation security threats. These threats, whether high-tech or low-tech, have the potential to disrupt, disable, or even destroy commercial aircraft and the critical infrastructure that supports their safe operation.

National action plans and policy prioritization exercises are conducted by PNNL SMEs across multiple threat areas to help partners address AVSEC threats at the national level. 

Key areas of AVSEC work at PNNL and foreign partner engagements include:

• Man-Portable Air Defense Systems (MANPADS) and Anti-Tank Guided Missiles (ATGM) recognition and interdiction
• Unmanned aerial system and vehicle threats 
• Low-technology chemical and biological materials awareness and threat mitigation
• Cyber threats
• Insider threats
• National action planning and policy prioritization for threats to civil aviation and critical national infrastructure.

MANPADS and ATGM

PNNL assists partner countries in recognizing and deterring the widespread distribution of MANPADS and ATGM systems by non-state entities and terrorist groups globally. They are trained to document and report the details of these seized weapons to help take them out of the hands of bad actors.

Low-Technology Threats to Civilian Aircraft

PNNL scientists and subject matter experts teach an introduction to the chemical and biological materials, technologies, and tactics that make a low-technology attack possible, highlighting how these materials can be manipulated in new and creative ways to bypass security and bring them into the aviation ecosystem, including onboard an aircraft. 

Aviation security has improved significantly in recent years, making it more difficult to introduce traditional threat materials into the aviation environment, leading to more low-technology materials tactics as a potential substitute.  

Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS)

PNNL subject matter experts teach participants the characteristics of the UAS threat to civil aviation, attack methods, and evolving tactics for which civil aviation security officials need to be aware and plan against. Foreign partner engagements focus on gaps in knowledge, policy, and resources, steps to mitigate the UAS threat, and how to prioritize these threats. 

Cyber Threats

PNNL scientists and SMEs teach participants about vulnerabilities for manipulation or attack on various information technology and computer systems that air carriers and airports rely on to maintain daily operations and serve their customers. These crucial computer systems include in-flight controls, passenger ticketing and screening, and airport logistics.

Training content helps aviation security professionals identify where vulnerabilities may exist in their current cyber-dependent systems so that security needs can be identified and prioritized. 

PNNL regularly carries out cyber-physical assessments of U.S. national infrastructure and has adapted this methodology for partner countries, conducting threat assessments in numerous locations.  

Insider Threats

Advances in security detection technology have greatly reduced the ability for outside threats (both materials and people) to affect an aircraft or be introduced into the aviation ecosystem.

However, these security enhancements make the “Insider” a high-value component of future plots and attacks. 

PNNL scientists and SMEs have conducted extensive insider threat research and training in high-consequence environments. These capabilities help teach partner nation aviation security officials the principles of insider threats and steps that can be taken to mitigate them. 

National Action Planning

Using methodologies learned from both U.S. aviation national action plans and international practice, PNNL teaches partner countries to design and populate national action plan frameworks across a variety of aviation security threats. These frameworks are then completed with the input of a broad set of partner government stakeholders in the months after the initial engagement. 

For more information, please contact Cori Mejia or Tyler Hoffman