The Impact of the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks on the Airline Industry

The Impact of the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks on the Airline Industry

Is the aviation industry of the 21st century safe? The entire worldwide aviation security system was revolutionized after one significant event on September 11, 2001. It was the day that the terrorists came into our country and stole our peace of mind and our safety. Although we all suffered a major blow from the incident, the aviation industry felt it more than most. The hijackings and the attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon have dealt the industry a blow three-fold to ours, by frightening passengers, adding costs to comply with increased security measures and threatening to weaken the global economy further. The attacks of September 11, 2001 threw the aviation industry into turmoil, but they also helped us re-discover how critical the air system is to global commerce.

The Initial Impact

Aviation is traditionally among the industries most vulnerable to downturns, let alone catastrophes. Before the attacks, most airlines had very thin profit margins ranging about 3 percent of revenue. An incident like September 11th had only put the future of many companies at stake to include all aspects of aviation, such as technology development. Unfortunately, what is out of the airlines’ control is the sense of the comfort of flying. The sharp decline in the demand for air transportation in 2001 and 2002 caused several airlines to file bankruptcy. According to Thomas Weidemeyer, UPS’s chief operating officer in 2002 as well as Midway Airlines President, “Without a free-flowing aviation system, trade is strangled and economies suffocate. And we learned that our citizens are not really free unless they have full confidence in the safety of our aviation system.” The American Automobile Association predicted that 87 percent of the travelers going on a trip of 50 miles or more would choose to drive because of the fears of flying for the several months that followed the September...