Catdom Case Study: Strategic Recommendation

Read this strategic recommendation for Catdom Case Study to improve airport security. Learn about inter-agency collaboration, advanced technology, security personnel, and training for custom agents.

Running Head: STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATION 1
Catdom Case Study: Strategic Recommendation
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STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATION 2
Catdom Case Study: Strategic Recommendation
In recent years, various nations such as the United States have recognized the need to
undertake comprehensive measures aimed at improving border protection. The emergence of
global terrorism, an increase in the population of illegal immigrants as well as contraband
commodities, have brought a devastating impact on the socio-economic and political stability of
both developing and developed nations. The governor of Catdom should embrace International
Standards and Recommended Practices that have been adopted by ICAO. The measures include;
as inter-agency collaboration, adoption of advanced technology and training of airport security
agents to ensure efficient border protection at international airports.
Poor Coordination of operations among different security agencies
One of the major problems hindering the operations at Catdom international airports is
lack of coordination among the different security agencies. The airports have not recognized the
role of collaborative work and coordination of activities. Despite the presence of various security
agencies in the airports, the passengers are subjected to similar questions and screening process
resulting in slow passenger and baggage processing speed. It has led to the infiltration of illegal
immigrants, contraband commodities, drugs as well as terrorists. The state of Catdom should
initiate an inter-agency team consisting of agencies such as the International Civil Aviation
Organization (ICAO), Customs and Border Protection, Catdom's state's government as well as
the general public. Collective action and coordination of activities can play a significant impact
on preventing illegal activities and enhancing the safety of international airports (Jones &
Rosenblum, 2013). Critical operations such as aircraft registration, aerodrome reference coding,
and passport standardization require a collaborative effort.

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Inter-agency collaboration should also ensure that each airport, as well as the airline,
have a unique code for identification. According to ICAO standards, the airports are required to
have a 4-letter code for the airports. The airlines, however, are expected to have a 3-letter unique
code. The state of Catdom hence, should ensure all the airports and airlines have the relevant
systems for easy identification. The state's government, through the Department of Homeland
security, should provide funding that will be used to initiate various activities at international
airports. The general public should also be encouraged to report any suspicious activities within
the airport premises.
The state of Catdom, therefore, should create an inter-agency team that coordinates
activities aimed at improving border protection. One of the memorable roles of inter-agency
coordination was the capture of Mexican drug lord Joaquin El Chapo Guzman who was arrested
after a collaborative effort between the US and Mexican Customs and Border Protection units.
Therefore, the adoption of an inter-agency collaboration will improve the quality of operations at
the two international airports in the state of Catdom and thus prevent the entry of contraband
goods, illegal immigrants and terror threats into the Continental Union.
Lack of advanced technology and automation of operations
The two international airports in the state of Catdom have not embraced modern
technology. According to the findings of the assessment, the security agents undertake manual
inspection and document verification. Moreover, security agents lack a digital database for
collecting and sharing passenger information. Baggage screening is also conducted visually by
security agents. Hence the airports have failed to comply with the ICAO standards for aviation
safety. Modern technology has brought a significant impact on contemporary society. The state

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of Catdom should embrace state of the art technology that will ensure the automation of
operations. The help of sophisticated technology should undertake the screening of both
passengers and the cargo. According to ICAO, global airports are expected to adopt the machine-
readable passports for all the passengers (Ferrara, Franco, Maio, & Maltoni, 2012). This standard
enables airport security agents to process a large volume of passengers within a shorter period. It
is because the advanced X-ray machine can easily detect the standard passports. Since global
terrorists and drug traffickers have been employing new ways of transporting contraband
commodities and bombs in the planes, the adoption of advanced technology can help in
preventing illegal products from reaching the continental union. The Customs and Border
Protection agents should ensure that they adopt modern screening devices to detect even partially
assembled bomb elements.
Moreover, the drugs and contraband goods that are usually hidden in the planes should be
unearthed before they travel to the mainland. Advanced screening methods such as backscatter
X-rays can be employed to identify hidden weapons, drugs, or partially assembled bomb-making
materials. As opposed to the traditional metal detectors, the adoption of new scanning and
screening methods such as Compton scattering, which undertakes full-body scanning, can play a
critical role in the war against contraband goods, drugs, and illegal immigrants. Another
technology that has helped in the identification of passengers at major airports is the Project
Hostile Intent. The facial recognition technology has also helped in identifying people who carry
fake passports. Automation of the passenger and baggage processing has enabled the US
Customs and Border Patrol to detect bombs sent by terror groups such as the Al-Qaeda and the
ISIS.

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The adoption of advanced technology will also enhance the process of immigrant
documentation. Sophisticated technology can be used to examine critical details of an immigrant
to check criminal background. Therefore, the state of Catdom should implement advanced
technology to facilitate proper documentation of new immigrants at the airports. Moreover, the
use of the state-of-the-art technology will also prevent corrupt Customs and Border officials
from illegally allowing immigrants to enter the Continental Union. The automation of the various
processes such as immigrant processing thus will ensure that illegal immigrants, contraband
commodities as well as criminals stopped at the airports.
Another benefit that the Customs and Border Protection unit will acquire from adopting
advanced technology is the creation of a comprehensive information database. The ICAO
standards promote the adoption of the Aeronautical Message Handling System. The database
contains information that aid in air navigation throughout the world (Campos, & Marques, 2011).
Securing the borders, especially airports, require a fast and efficient way of collecting, analyzing,
and sharing of vital passenger information among different agencies. Advanced technology will
enable the agents to develop an information database that will contain essential information
about passengers and immigrants. The database thus will help in identifying suspected terrorists,
immigrants, and drug traffickers. For example, in the case that one of the major drug cartel
leaders was in one of the commercial planes, the airport security agents can share the information
with global border security agents to identify and arrest the drug cartel leader.
Therefore, the state of Catdom should form an innovation task force that will be
mandated with spearheading the adoption of advanced technology aimed at improving airport
security. The airports in Catdom should comply with the International Standards and

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Recommended Practices to prevent illegal immigrants and contraband goods from entering the
Continental Union.
Insufficient Number of Security Personnel
Another major problem that is facing the two international airports in the state of Catdom
is the shortage of custom agents. The presence of a limited number of security agents has
hindered the passenger and luggage processing. The agents continuously air grievances that they
are overworked. Despite the increasing population of passengers, airport management has not
increased the number of customs officials. Therefore, the few available personnel are forced to
work under strict supervision. The situation has led to minimal monitoring of luggage at the
baggage hall. The passengers, therefore, can easily steal the baggage without being caught by the
authorities. According to Stanton (2012), the international standards advanced by both ICAO and
the Kyoto Convention require global airports to employ a sufficient number of security agents to
boost airport security. The available agents thus are overworked leading to reduced work
efficiency. The number of passengers alighting at the airports has been increasing; hence, the
state of Catdom should employ more security agents to increase the security at the airports.
Through increasing the number of security agents, the Customs and Border Protection
unit will be in a position to delegate various critical activities to different groups of the security
agents. For each, a group of agents will be tasked with documenting the immigrants, screening
the cargo and luggage while other groups will be tasked with monitoring the movements of the
passengers within the airports. Having a sufficient number of agents will play a tremendous role
in improving the operations at the airports due to the division of labor. Increasing the number of

STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATION 7
security agents will also enable airports to have different check-points. The presence of various
checkpoints will facilitate the proper screening of both passengers and baggage.
Moreover, the workers will be in a position to work in shifts to reduce work burnout.
Overworking of the agents is one of the factors that have contributed to negligence and
underperformance, leading to the infiltration of the drugs, illegal immigrants, contraband goods,
and terrorists. The Customs and Border Patrol officials in several nations have recognized the
role of a sufficient number of security agents at significant entry points. It is because a high
number of agents facilitate work efficiency since the agents work in a sustainable environment.
Moreover, the security agents can form teams that are assigned different duties to perform within
the airports.
Lack of proper training for the Custom agents
The two major airports in the state of Catdom lack highly skilled security agents. The
agents are expected to process the high volume of passengers who arrive at the airports daily.
The shortage of skilled labor-force has affected the efficiency of operations within the airports. It
is because the security agents lack the knowledge of identifying illegal commodities and objects
that are hidden in the airplanes. Just like in other professions, training and skill development can
enhance the productivity of the security agents in the airports. The International Standards and
Recommended Practices require airports to initiate comprehensive training characterized by the
adoption of ICAO recommended aviation-related courses (Chang, & Liao, 2010). The state of
Catdom hence should initiate a multi-agency training process in which the airport security
stakeholders such as the Customs and Border Protection, the FBI, Federal Aviation
Administration, and the state law enforcement officers are trained in the effective processing of

STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATION 8
passengers. The training should also focus on how the security agents from different agencies
can work as teams to upgrade the security at the airports. Teamwork is crucial in managing
airport security. Each team should coordinate activities with another group to ensure that both
the passengers and the baggage are adequately processed. The state of Catdom, therefore, should
utilize the available international funding to hire both local and international security experts.
The security professional should have experience working with the Customs and Border
Protection or Border Patrol units. During the training, the airport security agents should be
trained on a wide range of critical issues such as document processing, cargo management,
weapons, and contraband commodities identification, crisis management as well as sharing of
passenger information on the inter-agency information database. The security agencies should
also be allowed to attend shows and exhibitions during the training process.
Moreover, the airports should conduct exchange programs in which the security agents
are trained by nations such as Israel that has adopted critically acclaimed Customs and Border
Protection strategies. Training is essential in equipping the custom agents with the necessary
skills required to improve airport security. The Kyoto Convention adopted provisions that
require airports to initiate training programs for security personnel. Training enables security
agents to acquire relevant information regarding aviation security.
Conclusion
The assessment of the operations of the major airports in the state of Catdom shows that
the airports have not complied with the International Standards and Recommended Practices.
The ICAO and Kyoto Convention have been at the forefront of implementing practical global
standards in the aviation industry. Vital provisions of the ICAO such as the use of machine-

STRATEGIC RECOMMENDATION 9
readable passports, training of custom and security agents, promotion of inter-agency
coordination and the adoption of state-of-the-art technology can play a fundamental role in
improving airport security. The governor of Catdom hence should use the available international
fund to initiate operations that adhere to the globally recognized Standards and Recommended
Practices within the aviation industry.

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References
Campos, L., & Marques, J. (2011). Collision Probabilities, Aircraft Separation and Airways
Safety. In Aeronautics and Astronautics. Intech-Open.
Chang, Y. H., & Liao, M. Y. (2010). Airline Passengers. Asia Pacific Management
Review, 15(4), 533-547.
Ferrara, M., Franco, A., Maio, D., & Maltoni, D. (2012). Face image conformance to iso/ICAO
standards in machine-readable travel documents. IEEE Transactions on Information
Forensics and Security, 7(4), 1204-1213.
Jones, V. C., & Rosenblum, M. R. (2013). US Customs and Border Protection: Trade facilitation,
enforcement, and security. Journal of Aviation Security.
Stanton, J. (2012), (2nd Ed.). ICAO and the biometric RFID passport: History and analysis.
Playing the identity card: Surveillance, security, and identification from a global
perspective, 253-67.