This is an excerpt Transportation Security White Paper I wrote in 1979, (that would be 40 years ago). The paper was written for the International Association of Chiefs of Police, and published in their “Clandestine Tactics and Technology Series.”
In 1977 thru 1979, I was conducting Surveillance Detection (SD) operations (not training) in Iran, South America, and Germany. The catalyst for the SD Programs were two significant vehicle-related incidents that occurred in 1977. The events were vehicle attacks on Rockwell Engineers and two Air Force Officers. It got the attention of the Corporate, Military, and Government community.
A collection of old news articles reporting the incidents:
The complete White Paper is available to ISDA Members free. But in the past 40 years the document has been copied and since the advent of the internet posted many times. Hence if you do a Google search, I am sure you can find the paper.
This is the Conclusion Section of the Paper
Surprise is essential to the success of any terrorist assault or abduction. It is obvious, however, that any such operation requires extensive previous reconnaissance and surveillance; and it is precisely at this stage that an attack can, and must, be thwarted.
The potential kidnap victim must develop counter-surveillance techniques and preventive measures that can reduce the possibilities of attack. Accordingly, while the victim must learn to recognize a developing ambush, he must also know how to react to and evade an abduction attempt. To this end, the potential victim must analyze beforehand the ingredients necessary for a successful ambush and develop an awareness program to protect against them.
These efforts include route planning, the designation of both danger zones and safe havens, and the realization that, once an assault begins, the vehicle he is traveling in must never stop. First priority is fleeing the attack scene as fast as possible. In this regard, a potential victim must be assured that his automobile is armored and thus strong enough to withstand a fusillade of machine-gun fire and capable of withstanding damage to the engine and tires. The final preventive element is skilled defensive and, when need be, offensive driving — something imparted by actual experience.
You can find an abstract of this paper on the National Criminal Justice Reference Service website.
Tony Scotti – You can reach Tony on Facebook and LinkedIn
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