Airports Scramble to Bolster Security Amid Escalating Missile and Drone Threats

Airports worldwide are urgently re-evaluating their security protocols to safeguard passengers and ensure flight continuity as missile and drone attacks present a growing and significant danger to civilian aviation, according to industry experts. Recent Houthi rebel attacks in Saudi Arabia, coupled with prolonged disruptions from the war in Iran, have highlighted the vulnerability of airport infrastructure to contemporary warfare and the challenges of maintaining operations during extended security crises. Industry leaders convened at the Dubai Airport Show on Monday, emphasizing that airports are investing in advanced technology and robust contingency planning to counter threats ranging from military strikes to cyber-attacks, while acknowledging that complete security for any facility remains an elusive goal. Tim Walder, chairman of the British Aviation Group, noted that the evolving landscape of global conflicts presents unprecedented challenges for airport operators. "What we're seeing today is a completely different set of challenges being faced geopolitically," he stated. "Resilience isn't something that's 100 per cent, it's always going to fail on occasions, but we learn faster. The key thing is the airport can be a leader in terms of understanding where the threats can come from, such as cybersecurity and climate change." Mr. Walder, whose company provides expertise on navigating the complexities of the global aviation industry, stressed the critical importance of passenger support during a crisis to maintain confidence. "If something goes down, you lose passenger confidence and you can lose that for a long time," he explained. "Cyber-attacks are obviously high up there when talking about risk and we are seeing different levels of that. A few months ago in the UK and Europe, hackers attacked the software that supports the check-in process and that impacted a number of airports in Europe, including London and Brussels. These attacks aren't going to be just necessarily hitting an individual airport or airline, they're going to hit a network. The question is how do we make the network more resilient as well." Critical Gulf transit hubs and other major infrastructure are increasingly integrating site security with dedicated anti-drone and air defence systems to enhance protection at airports. International gateways in the region have intensified perimeter screening and police patrols near airport vicinities, while some have introduced terminal entry checkpoints in response to heightened threat levels in the Middle East. Exhibitors at the Dubai World Trade Centre showcased the latest countermeasures and demonstrated the rapid advancement of drone technology in securing airspace. Udi Lowy, sales director for the Gulf Co-operation Council and India at D-Fend Solutions, highlighted his company's EnforceAir Plus system, which is designed to hijack unidentified drones and bring them under control. "Drones are quite a new threat in the world, so most of the technologies just adopt [existing] air-defence mechanisms for drones," he commented. "We are using cyber systems that detect the communication of the drone and we have the ability to retract the relevant information from the drone itself." Instead of jamming a drone's signal, which could lead to damage or injuries on the ground, the EnforceAir Plus system takes control of the drone and facilitates a safe landing. The system can subsequently identify the drone's deployment origin and operator. Mr. Lowy added that the system can be configured to handle simultaneous drone swarm attacks. "Sometimes, a kid can fly a drone and create mayhem. Rather than jamming all signals, we cherry-pick the signal we want to interfere with and actually take the drone itself. We don't interfere with any other signal, so there is no interference with airplanes." The Ministry of Defence has reported a total of 2,265 drone attacks since February 28, following the outbreak of the Iran war, with Dubai International Airport alone managing 111 aerial threat alerts. Future airport developments, such as the expansion of Al Maktoum International Airport, are planned to incorporate blast-proof designs and hardened concrete structures to strengthen defenses against aerial assaults. Security is a prominent theme at this year's show. Speaking on a panel at the Dubai Airport Show concerning operational resilience under pressure, Binu Gopal, chief operating officer at Ras Al Khaimah International Airport, emphasized that maintaining operations safely and efficiently is paramount during a crisis. "We prepare for multiple kinds of disruption which may occur at the airport," he stated. "Resilience is the ability to continue our operations even when we face some kind of disruption, maintain critical activities and respond to the disturbance, and get back to normal safely and efficiently. This cuts across the entire ecosystem, be it set operations, terminal operations, airlines, ground-handling operations, customs and immigration. However, during a crisis, it becomes more and more interdependent. For us it is not about having a contingency plan, it's about how well we are able to respond as a team."