NUR-SULTAN – Experts from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) commended the level of aviation security in Kazakhstan and gave a positive evaluation of ongoing measures to protect civil aviation from unlawful interference, reports the country’s Aviation Administration.
Kazakhstan’s Aviation Administration Director-General Peter Griffiths briefs the U.S. aviation experts on his organization’s activities. Photo credit: caakz.com
During the meeting, the Aviation Administration of Kazakhstan, which was established in August of 2019 as part of Kazakhstan’s effort to modernize the country’s aviation regulations and ensure its airlines and airports operate to high international standards, and the U.S. TSA agreed to cooperate to launch direct flights to the US.
At the invitation of the aviation authorities of Kazakhstan, work has begun on certification of Kazakhstan’s airports to serve flights and on the assignment of CAT1 for flights to the US. TSA experts visited the Civil Aviation Committee, the Aviation Administration of Kazakhstan, and the Nur-Sultan and Almaty airports to evaluate aviation security.
The TSA team noted that the existing aviation security regulations and quality control measures comply with the standards and recommended practices of the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO). The ongoing efforts and procedures carried out at Nur-Sultan and Almaty airports meet international requirements, and in some cases, the measures are even higher than the established standards, including the measures for airport perimeter security and protection, access control in secured restricted areas, recruitment, and qualification of security personnel, in-flight meals, cargo, and mail screening.
Experts have indicated opportunities to improve measures in some fields of cybersecurity, protection of civil aviation against unlawful acts of interference from unmanned aerial vehicles, modernization of airport inspection equipment for passenger screening, step-by-step transition to 3D passenger scanning equipment, and the use of modern detectors at inspection points.
The TSA recommended the Kazakh aviation authorities improve screening procedures for aviation personnel and their belongings, measures for staffing of aviation security services, depending on the number of screening points and security posts, and increase flights.
The TSA team also conducted consultations to exchange best practices to ensure aviation security with the Aviation Administration experts.
