Originally Posted by L-1011
Shouldn't we then also factor in the national economic impact of a terrorist act involving WMD in a downtown area? I think that is more likely to happen than another aircraft act.
Agree. IMHO, in a strange way, American society has become somewhat desensitized to the prospect of turning commercial aircraft into cruise missiles or simply blowing them up because both have happened already. Since 9/11, the business world has adjusted to less travel and more use of VTC, NetMeeting/WebEx, etc. A WMD event or something different would be a "new" event and, I suspect, cause the same 9/11-type paranoia on Wall Street.
Being the capitalists that we are, a portion of our recovery has been in the new industries and products that have cropped up to mitigate the effects of the TSA: no-metal shoes & other TSA-proof clothing, "TSA-approved" luggage locks, "mail back your prohibited item" kiosks, reinforced cockpit door manufacturers, etc. And, because there's one born every minute, we have run out in droves and bought all this stuff. There has been lots of airport construction that has created business for construction companies.