The Airforwarders Association (AfA) has urged shippers to prepare for U.S. air cargo security enhancements, which come into force in October, affecting certain types of freight on international all-cargo flights.
Brandon Fried, AfA executive director, said the temporary Impracticable to Screen Amendment would come to an end on October 31, 2023, meaning cargo that cannot be screened using traditional methods due to size or volume restrictions will not be eligible for air transportation unless shippers are enrolled in one of Transport Security Administration (TSA)'s authorized cargo security programs.
He added that shippers could join one of the programs on a voluntary basis to gain trusted status.
"There will only be three options after October 31st; join one of the programs, use sea freight instead of air freight, or don't ship cargo at all," Fried told delegates at the CNS Partnership Conference in Miami on June 5.
"TSA is holding the line on this; there will be no extension," he added.
"We have started in-person meetings, as well as webinars, to explain the options and we need forwarders to work with their shipper customers and support them to work with TSA and join a program."
The AfA executive director noted that it would be holding its next face-to-face meeting about the security programs on June 27, 2023, in Chicago, working with the International Air Cargo Association of Chicago and the Chicago Brokers and Forwarders Association, followed by events in New York and Los Angeles.
"This should be a tripartite effort — shippers, forwarders, and TSA," Fried said.
Fried was joined on a panel at the CNS conference by Thomas Kenny, deputy director of the FAA Office of Security and Hazardous Materials, Safety, Oversight and Operations Divisions, and John Beckius, executive director of Air Cargo Division, Policy, Plans and Engagement, TSA.
On June 30, 2021, TSA mandated that all air cargo originating in the United States and destined for non-U.S. locations be screened or secured before being loaded on to an all-cargo aircraft.
This mandate for the air cargo supply chain addressed an international requirement that all cargo, including, but not limited to, unique items such as drums containing chemicals and large industrial equipment, be screened or secured against potential threats to aviation.
"To support this effort, TSA is providing an opportunity for additional shippers, assemblers, and manufacturers to apply security during the packaging process that will be sufficient to reduce the need for screening later in the supply chain," Beckius said during the forum.
"To participate in this option, these entities will need to become a Certified Cargo Screening Facility, which means they will be certified by TSA to assemble, pack, secure, and tender cargo for air transport in a secured manner such that no additional screening will be required," the executive director of Air Cargo Division, Policy, Plans and Engagement, TSA, added.
