When considering airport security, we typically envision TSA checkpoints and baggage screening. But a January 2026 vehicle crash at Detroit Metro Airport serves as a stark reminder of a less-discussed vulnerability: the public areas before security screening. The Chertoff Group’s Lee Kair, principal and head of Transportation & Innovation spoke to the Detroit Free Press about the incident.
The Public Area Challenge
“It’s called public area security,” Kair, former Transportation Security Administration executive explains. These spaces, ticketing areas, baggage claim, curb-side drop-offs, all present unique challenges because they must remain openly accessible while protecting thousands of travelers daily.
The Detroit incident, where a vehicle breached a terminal entrance, illustrates why airports worldwide continuously assess vehicular threats. In 2007, the Glasgow Airport attack, where a concrete pillar prevented a vehicle loaded with explosives from entering the terminal, demonstrated both the vulnerability and the importance of strategic physical barriers.
Balancing Protection and Aesthetics
Effective vehicle barriers require significant infrastructure. Bollards typically need to be anchored several feet underground for optimal stopping power. On upper-level terminals, this creates structural complications because you can’t simply drill through a floor that serves as the ceiling for travelers below.
As Kair notes, there’s also an aesthetic consideration. Concrete barricades, known as Jersey barriers, may be effective but lack visual appeal compared to more architecturally integrated solutions.
Innovation and Vigilance
Modern security extends beyond visible barriers. AI-powered surveillance systems can now monitor traffic patterns in real-time, flagging vehicles that speed or linger suspiciously. Synthetic films applied to glass facades reduce shattering risks. Even simple operational measures such as law enforcement officers who keep traffic moving, serve security purposes by preventing vehicles from idling near entrances.
Airport architecture itself increasingly incorporates security from the design phase, though retrofitting existing terminals remains challenging.
Ultimately, as Kair emphasizes, travelers play a role too: remaining vigilant and reporting anything unusual to authorities helps protect these inherently public, yet vulnerable, spaces.
Read the full story in the Detroit Free Press here.
The Chertoff Group’s Transportation & Innovation business helps airports and airlines enhance security and resilience, while improving customer experience.
