Andrew Beard, Travis Nelson


Mr. Wojewodzki

Honors Human Geography

2 September 2010



Air travel, both in the United States and the world, is more common now than ever before. Despite the popularity of air travel in today’s world, the process of getting from one location to another is very complex and involves thousands of people around the globe. Government agencies, such as the Transportation Security Administration, work to ensure the safety of all passengers and flights in the United States. When everything and everyone in this process is working correctly, air travel is fairly simple; however, when something as catastrophic as a terrorist attack occurs, the entire process of air travel is horribly disturbed. On September 11, 2001, air travel in the United States, and throughout the world, would never be the same again.

Before the events of September 11, one could arrive at the airport much later compared to today’s air travel time requirements. Airport security was not nearly as high as it is today. The terrorist attacks of September 11 caused many changes in the field of air travel, both in the United States, and the world. First of all, to ensure the safety of all air travel, the United States Federal government set new standards of security in airports and on aircraft. Along with this, the Homeland Security Act was passed by Congress in 2002, one year after the attacks. New standards of safety and security were not only being set in the United States, but around the world.

Around the world, air travel security increased dramatically after September 11. Airports have strengthened their security systems so that no one who goes to an airport gets unchecked. Despite the increased security at international airports, the United States still has the most advanced security system in the world since the September 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York. Still, around the world, airports are becoming more prepared for situations like 9/11 that could happen at any point in time. When passengers board a plane, there are flight attendants that monitor the aircraft and its passengers. Air travel is more safe now than it has ever been. Terrorist attacks are less likely to happen in the United States; however, they are probably more likely in other parts of the world, as some countries might not have the technology to support an advanced security system. Regardless, September 11 was so disastrous that airports in the US and around the world do not want it to happen ever again.

September 11 had many impacts around the world. Airports have developed specific traffic control systems for airplanes to follow and specific routes have been developed so planes do not collide in the sky. These routes have helped for a safe experience for passengers on an airplane and pilots have a much easier time flying the plane. International flights have especially been a lot easier since September 11 because they are usually longer and the new traffic patterns have helped a lot. As a result of more safety on the plane, more adults are flying now than they used to and that number is increasing each year. More business trips are flying internationally too and many adults feel that they can be safe on an airplane and trust the pilots to fly the plane securely. Many adults have also abandoned their flights for numerous reasons and that number is slowly increasing, too. The country with the most incoming international flights is China, and people from other countries fly internationally to the United States the most. September 11 has had positive impacts on flights internationally but has had some negative impacts on international flights, too.

Believe it or not, the future of air travel will be even more secure and safe than it is now. New technology will allow every airport in the world to monitor each plane that is flying in the air at the same time to see where and when it will land. New technology will be built to occupy all the planes in the sky like specific routes from and to each airport. Pilots along with sophisticated technology will help planes fly around bad weather to ensure a safe flight for all passengers. Radar system will help pilots fly directs routes to the exact destination and traffic control systems will help pilots see how close each place is to their plane. Satellite-based technology will help pilots see where their exact location in the sky is. Passengers will eventually have everything they need like food and entertainment in the plane, especially on long, international flights. With all this new technology, passengers will have a much safer experience on the plane and pilots will have a much easier time flying the plane.

United States of America. Department of Homeland Security. By Derekh Cornwell. Web.

              "Air Traffic - NextGen Briefing." FAA: Home. Web. 08 Sept. 2010.

                        <http://www.faa.gov/air_traffic/briefing/>.



               2013. "Travel Facts and Statistics
                        U.S. Travel Association." U.S. Travel Association. Web. 08

               Sept. 2010. <http://www.ustravel.org/news/press-kit/travel-facts-and-statistics>.



               H.R. Rep. No. RL31617 (2002). Print.







All images were acquired from wikimedia.org, and are of the public domain.