FAA

Federal authorities have dismissed concerns raised by a security consultant who last week suggested that commercial airliners were vulnerable to remote hijacking by terrorists armed with little more than a smartphone and the right killer app.

But U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg doesn’t want to take any chances, and New Jersey's senior senator has written to the U.S. secretaries of transportation and homeland security asking them to investigate the threat and how to stop it.

THE UNITED STATES Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is taking another look at when electronic devices can be used during flight.

The FAA has asked airlines for their views on electronic device usage during flights. According to the FAA it will investigate what tests airlines conduct on devices to determine usage rules and consider establishing standards to allow electronic devices to be used at any stage of flight.

In a House Homeland Security oversight subcommittee hearing late this week, members of Congress raised concerns over the potential security risks posed by jamming and electronic hijacking of unmanned aerial systems, and the potential use of drones by terrorists.

The hearing came as the deadline looms for the FAA to devise regulations and licensing that incorporate unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) into the national airspace. And the agency is in the process of approving six test sites for UAV operations to help prepare for the full introduction of UAVs in 2015.