DHS reviewing proposals to counter shoulder-fired missile threat

The Homeland Security Department is sifting through 24 proposals to counter the threat of shoulder-fired missiles on U.S. commercial aircraft, a senior department official told lawmakers Wednesday.

At least two contract awards are expected to be made in January as part of a science and technology program to counter the threat of "man-portable air defense systems" (MANPADS), said Stephen McHale, deputy administrator of the Transportation Security Administration, in written testimony to the Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee.

McHale said the threat posed by MANPADS is of "credible concern," even though the department does not have specific intelligence indicating that an attack on commercial aircraft in the United States is likely.

"MANPADS are widely available on black or gray markets around the world," McHale said. "Even an unsuccessful MANPADS attack on a commercial airliner would have a devastating economic and political impact. As you can well imagine, this is a serious and complex issue with no single solution."

The committee held a closed session with McHale on Wednesday, the bulk of which was spent addressing the concerns of Sen. Barbara Boxer, D-Calif., about countering the threat of shoulder-fired missiles, said DHS spokesman Brian Roehrkasse.

Boxer said she fears that unstable circumstances in Iraq and Afghanistan are causing a proliferation of shoulder-fired missiles. She cited a Congressional Research Service report showing that thousands of the inexpensive weapons are unaccounted for around the world. The report also highlighted the attack by two shoulder-fired missiles on a U.S. C-141 military aircraft in Baghdad in September, and also cited the attempt by terrorists to shoot down an Israeli passenger jet filled with tourists as it departed from Mombasa, Kenya, last November.

Roehrkasse said assessments were completed at all the nation's airports to determine vulnerabilities to threats such as those posed by shoulder-fired missiles. He added that DHS is now completing vulnerability assessments at 13 airports overseas that service U.S. commercial aircraft.

DHS has $100 million to conduct a two-year science and technology program. About 200 participants from 91 organizations attended an industry conference in mid-October to learn about the program. The first phase of the effort will last six month and explore the economic, manufacturing and maintenance issues associated with anti-missile devices and their use with commercial aircraft. A second phase, lasting 18 months, will develop and test anti-missile prototypes based on existing technologies.

McHale said directed countermeasures appear to be the most promising technology for application on civilian aircraft, such as on-board lasers to disrupt missile sensors and steer missiles away from aircraft. He noted that traditional military pyrotechnic countermeasures, such as flares, are more risky because of fires and other problems they might cause in populated areas.