National Guard dispatched to Cortez for airport security

National Guard dispatched to Cortez for airport security

October 4, 2001

STAFF SGT. John Aylward of the Colorado National Guard stands at his post at the Cortez Municipal Airport Wednesday. Another member of the National Guard is stationed inside the terminal. The purpose of their presence at commercial-aviation facilities is to assist with airport security. They took their posts in Cortez on Tuesday.

By Jim Mimiaga
Journal Staff Writer

At the request of President Bush, Colorado Gov. Bill Owens has dispatched the National Guard to help with airport security at state airports, including Cortez Municipal.

Since Tuesday, two soldiers from a field artillery unit in Colorado Springs have been on duty at the Cortez airport. They are armed with M-16 rifles and 9mm handguns and are posted outside and inside the building.

"It is a security presence and meant to be a deterrent," said Lt. Holly Person, public affairs officer for the Colorado Army Guard. "We’re using a brigade of 1,000 for the Colorado mission to help protect the homeland."

Nationwide, 420 airports have received the military support, dubbed Operation Noble Eagle.

The move is in response to the Sept. 11 attacks on America when a group of kamikaze terrorists successfully hijacked commercial jetliners and then plunged them into the World Trade Center towers and Pentagon.

The military patrols are also meant to persuade the public that security upgrades have made flying safe again. For instance, knives, scissors, razor blades, nail files, box cutters or any pointed or sharp instrument are banned as carry-on items.

"Guardsman are there for oversight and to offer additional help screening if needed by the supervisor," Person said. "They have military training and also received training from the FAA before taking their posts."

Passenger screening is more diligent, and luggage searches may be requested, airport officials said. Parking is not allowed in the front lot of the building. However passengers can still be dropped off at the terminal.

Since all vehicles were claimed and moved from the lot, airport officials were allowed to remove the bomb-blast barrier made up of heavy construction equipment parked in front of the terminal. A temporary parking lot has been set up north of the airport building.

Assistant airport manager Russ Machen said he is petitioning the FAA for modified security measures so that the normal parking lot can be re-opened. If that measure is approved, vehicles parking in the lot will be registered with security and could be subject to random searches if any suspicion is raised, he said.

Under the proposal being applied for by Cortez, vehicles that park in the lot after hours without being screened and authorized would be towed away immediately.

"We’re still in a holding pattern, but we are hoping that we will be able to stand down on our security level since we are so small," Machen said.

La Plata/Durango airport may be subject to higher FAA security requirements, Machen said, because passenger boardings are 100,000 per year, ten times the number of passengers who board in Cortez.

After the attacks, travel by air dropped off dramatically. Cortez boardings are not up to normal yet, but they are improving, Machen said. He added that flights to Denver International Airport and back have been on-schedule.

Passenger reaction to the heavily-armed, camouflage-clad military personnel has been mixed but mostly positive, Machen said.

"It can be intimidating, but people seem pretty comfortable with the increases in security," he said. "Others seem sort of surprised to see the military here at our little airport."