Hybrid Threats and Supply Chain Safety Management

For almost a week in mid-April of 2010, the ash cloud of the Icelandic volcano Eyjafjallajökull brought the traffic in vast parts of the European airspace to a standstill. While public and media interest mainly concentrated on passenger flights cancelled as a consequence of it, worldwide cargo air traffic was also considerably impeded. The Director General and CEO of the International Air Transport Association (IATA), Giovanni Bisignani, emphasized in a press statement the far-reaching economic consequences: “Aviation drives economies. It supports $3.5 trillion in economic activity annually and 32 million jobs. When it was disrupted for six days in Europe, 100,000 flights were cancelled and $1.7 billion in industry revenue was lost. (...) Flowers from Kenya did not reach their markets. Australian oysters did not reach European kitchens. German factories did not have the parts to assemble their products.”