This article describes the mindset of our nation and the world regarding airborne terrorism before 9/11 and airborne terrorism today. This remains a very real and deadly topic even if there aren't that many incidents happening right now. However, the risk that countless lives could be lost in a plane crash due to the actions of a terrorist or terrorist organization is still very real, and innocent families in this nation and abroad remain the targets. Furthermore, it will demonstrate that the security measures in place at airports before 9/11 were much less adequate than today, and that the staff responsible for airport security at the gates and elsewhere were poorly trained or not trained at all when dealing with hijackers and terrorists. This document will also identify the extensive safety measures, rules and training that have been put in place, which have helped reduce acts of terrorism on board airliners. IntroductionWhether we would like to admit it or not there was a time, before September 11, 2001, when airborne terrorism was a very real danger and there seemed to be an average of one hijacking or terrorist event every thirty days somewhere in the world . Luckily this wasn't the case, in an online article I read there was an interview with a person who spoke to my thoughts, he said: "One example was a study I conducted on media coverage of the New York Times during a 17-year, pre-9/11 period, from 1978 to 1994. Among other things, I found that deadly aviation events involving jet planes hijacked, sabotaged, or destroyed by military action, which accounted for approximately 8% of fatal plane crashes reported by the Times in that period, accounted for about 48% of all plane crash articles in that period” (T. Curtis, personal interview, September 11, 2009). suitcase transported aboard a plane with an explosive inside, capable of ending the lives of all those on board, men, women and children regardless of age, gender and religion hijacker because somehow we seemed to know who he was and where he came from. Sometimes it seemed like we knew why and in most cases we did it because that was their plan; they wanted the attention so they could present their list of demands.