TSA & FRENCH CIVIL AVIATION AUTHORITY ON AVIATION

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 006075 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS STATE FOR EUR/WE, EB/TRA, L, S/CT USEU FOR MORENSKI E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EAIR ECON PTER ASEC FR SUBJECT: TSA & FRENCH CIVIL AVIATION AUTHORITY ON AVIATION SECURITY, NO FLY, AND PNR REF: A. PARIS 5958 ¶B. PARIS 5674 ¶C. STATE 125421 SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (SBU). In a detailed September 5 discussion, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary for Transportation Security Administration (TSA) Kip Hawley and France DGAC Director General Michel Wachenheim discussed aircraft security in the wake of the recent foiled plot in the UK. The GOF has adopted an inspection regime which goes beyond TSA's recent new Emergency Amendments (EAs),and Wachenheim and Hawley pledged to stay in close contact and coordinate efforts on emerging new standards. On the Passenger Name Record (PNR) issue, Wachenheim stated clearly that airlines would continue to furnish PNR data on France-origin passengers to the USG after September 30, even if the U.S. and EU are unable to come up with a new PNR agreement by end September. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (U) The DHS Assistant Secretary for TSA Kip Hawley called on French civil aviation agency (DGAC) Director-General Michel Wachenheim September 5. Hawley was accompanied by TSA/TSNM General Manager Rich Stein, Economic SIPDIS Minister-Counselor, and Paris TSAR. Wachenheim was joined by DGAC Technical and Strategic Affairs deputy Paul Schwach, Asst. Deputy DGAC Director Gerard Lefevre and DGAC Security Manager Jacques Le Guillou. AIRPORT SECURITY IN THE WAKE OF THE FOILED UK PLOT -------------- -------------- ¶3. (SBU) Michel Wachenheim opened the discussions by welcoming Assistant Secretary Hawley to France. He noted strong GOF support for the types of security measures promulgated in TSA,s newly implemented emergency amendments (EA/SDs),restricting gels and liquids in carry-on baggage. From a bilateral standpoint, he stressed the need for improving communication and information-sharing to streamline the process of implementing emergency security measures. Wachenheim fleshed out the complexities of complying with GOF,s own internal requirements, EU measures, and U.S. EAs simultaneously. In addition, the French Interior Ministry put extremely tough measures in place in the wake of the UK plot, requiring both 100% checks of carry-on bags and 100% physical searches of U.S., Israel, and, initially, UK-bound passengers. ¶4. (SBU) Looking to the development of new standards going forward, Wachenheim asked the DHS Assistant Secretary what would be the minimum percentage of screening that the U.S. could accept for gels and liquids. He also asked about what level of screening other countries were using. Hawley explained that these items must be screened for at the main screening checkpoint (100%) and that there must be random/continuous screening at the boarding gate. The U.S. could probably accept a 10% random screeing rate, but would have a difficult time implementing a higher rate of random checks. He noted that the UK currently screens at the 50% rate at the boarding gate. In the United States, items purchased in the Duty Free shops are placed in sealed transparent bags and delivered to the passenger at the boarding gate. ¶5. (SBU) Wachenheim said that the EU is requiring 10% screening of these items. By contrast, the UK is conducting 50% screening. In France, for flights to the U.S. and Israel, the screening is 100%. For all other destinations the screening is currently set at 50%. He added that for France, somewhere between 10-30% would be acceptable, and France will work toward this in the EU context.. He stressed the economic impact on the Aroports de Paris (ADP) and the Duty Free shops in CDG. Some shops have claimed a 40% loss in sales since the release of the new security measures and have even planned on announcing future layoffs. ¶6. (SBU) DHS Assistant Secretary Hawley noted that the U.S. is considering permitting a certain number of small containers (perhaps up to eight 50-75 ml containers) onboard with each passenger. This amount was determined by TSA experts to be an allowable quantity and could facilitate the need for certain overnight flyers to carry personal items on PARIS 00006075 002 OF 002 board. Hawley offered to make TSA experts available to meet with DGAC officials. Wachenheim and Hawley further discussed acceptable x-ray and screening equipment, and Paris TSA Representative emphasized the need for proper training of screeners on how to detect containers potentially containing liquids. Hawley is hopeful that a new standard can be devised quickly and applied consistently over the near future. ¶7. (SBU) Both Wachenheim and Hawley agreed that purchases of duty-free items in a &sterile8 duty-free environment did not pose a major problem. Wachenheim noted, however, that many airports are wrestling with how to handle purchases made in airports in non-sterile environments (e.g.., non-controlled pre-security screening shops). This is a major problem at Schipol Airport in Amsterdam, for example. Wachenheim wondered whether it might be possible to have such purchases sealed by the vendor, sent through explosives detection systems, and delivered to passengers at the departure gate. NO FLY AND PNR ISSUES -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Assistant Secretary Hawley noted with satisfaction that the number of flight diversions on Paris-U.S. routes had diminished significantly over the past year. Hawley hoped that a future rollout of the APIS Quick Query (AQQ) system could further shift the burden of terrorist name matching from the air carrier to the U.S. Government. He added that he was actively working with his CBP counterparts on this issue and stressed that this was a definite priority for TSA. ¶9. (SBU) Economic Minister Counselor questioned Wachenheim about DGAC views on the US-EU PNR agreement discussions. Wachenheim stressed the importance of coming to an agreement by September 30, if possible, emphasizing that without an agreement the air carriers would lose their legal umbrella for providing PNR data to the USG. However, Wachenheim stated clearly that carriers operating from France would continue to provide PNR data to US authorities even in the absence of an agreement by September 30. COMMENT -------------- ¶10. (SBU) The discussion with DGAC was positive and detail-oriented. The GOF has adopted a robust security stance in the aftermath of the UK plot discovery, but clearly is hoping to move to a standard that is less onerous than 100-percent checks and more viable over the medium-to-long term. As we have heard from other interlocutors on the PNR issue, Wachenheim was reassuring that PNR information will continue to be transmitted post-September 30. Please visit Paris' Classified Website at: http://www.state.sgov.gov/p/eur/paris/index.c fm HOFMANN