Short of living on a giant petri dish, you’d be hard pressed to find a more ideal environment for the spread of germs than a pressurized airline cabin that hauls thousands of passengers each day.
If Covid-19 evolves into a more aggressive virus, suddenly the airlines and the airports become an even bigger health hazard. They could elevate community spread ad the airline industry fails.
Once the airlines are grounded, all modes of public transportation may be shut down. The cascading effect is very plausible. Given the worst-case scenario, not only will our transportation industries fail, but the supply chains fail, and the American people will fail too.
Our expert guest is Don Trumbull. He’s a former air carrier owner who understands painfully well the dark challenges our U.S airlines face. In 2008, he developed defensive measures to secure emergency air travel in the grid-down environment. Today, he is well aware of the difficulties we face with covid-19 and our U.S supply chains. His countermeasure platform is called the Safe State Project, built for the loss of our critical infrastructures.
Q&A:
- Airlines vs. Covid-19. Can they survive? What are the challenges?
Very Fluid. Problem with the unknowns. For the Airlines — More serious than 9/11.
Back then: Full grounding. Sudden and immediate, but we had a known enemy. We could defend immediately.
We did. HYJACK Strategy disarmed. Fear reduced. Crowds flying again.
Covid-19 much different. Invisible Enemy. No defense/unfixable. Airlines quickly becoming health hazard. Another full grounding very possible. 2 scenarios, maybe 3.
- Most likely: Short-term Grounding/Minimal Service; 6-8 weeks. Community Spread Drops. Recoverable. Government Bailouts.
- 2nd scenario: Much worse. Long-term Grounding. Community Spread continues. Commercial service ON-HOLD until vaccination. Merging into 3rd scenario.
- Worst-case. Covid-19 becomes “more aggressive/unending”. Supply Chain disruption/loss. Economic collapse. America unrecognizable. Vaccination only hope.
Worst-case scenarios removed from public discussion out of fear of panic. Today we have rampant fearmongering. Political agendas seeking to exploit crisis. Daily confidence building for purpose of “countering” the panic narrative.
End result: Incomplete message. Vulnerability censored. Worst-case scenario removed. Reckless/irresponsible. Head in Sand.
Rational discussion: Front and center. If Covid-19 becomes more aggressive over time: Supply chains will become compromised to the point of failure. Basic Food/Supplies.
Achilles Heel. Deadly Pandemic/EMP/solar flare/cyberwarfare. Loss of infrastructures. Panic/Suffering/Death. Urgent Defense Required.
I don’t think covid-19 is worst-case, but many unknowns. Clear Warning. We’re at the mercy of all threats. Need Emergency Reserves at the local level. Solution is rudimentary, but SWAMP fears panic. Censorship first/React when needed. Need Trump. Emergency Supply Chains. Backup defense. Purpose over panic.
Requires a special skill to thread the needle. “Art of the Deal”
- Emergency Reserves at local level? Is this stockpiling?
Community stockpiling, Not hoarding. Unified effort to harness supply chain “reserves” for emergency purposes. Critical supplies in every state and county. Ready on-demand. Safe States.
Federal/state governments work hand-in-hand with private sector so we can survive deadly pandemics, EMP, cyber warfare. All threats that can disable our supply chains.
EMP/solar flares/cyberwarfare: Need a bit more, but emergency food/health/medical supplies good first step.
First bite at the apple. Do more as we progress. Establishing local/on-site reserves now could defend us from deadly pandemics/biowarfare requiring long-term separation.
Regarding biowarfare: The strategic value of releasing a deadly virus on the modern-day world is clear. Exploitation someday is virutally assured.
Just imagine if Covid-19 was engineered with a gain of function? No immunity/second wave? What if it behaved like the Spanish Flu?
Only one way for America to survive. Immediate lockdown. Long-term Shelter-in-Place. Long-term separation.
If every resident had access to a 90-day supply of food/health/medical supply, we could survive. We could prevail. No Panic. Strong and Ready.
“Quarantine Holiday”. Maybe a better term, but a life-saving countermeasure we need to have ready. Dangerous world and the American people deserve responsible defense. Politics out. Free college/free healthcare out. Climate change out. Responsible defense in.
Trump can do this. We believe he will. Only a matter of time. Political hammer.
We’re not talking Doomsday preppers. Clearly required. Sane and rational.
- Could all states become Safe? Are there some that can’t?
I live in Idaho. Population just under 2 million. 20 states with roughly 3 million.
So, Idaho, and all the rural states can do it easily. Others with high density populations would have a harder time, but doable to large degree.
This is a sound plan. Right now, we have none.
ABOUT DON TRUMBULL…
DON TRUMBULL is an author and a former air carrier president and director of operations.
Following a ten-year mission exploring the vulnerability of our U.S. air carriers/supply chains to the catastrophic threat of solar flare/electromagnetic pulse, in 2019 his broader findings inspired a civilian countermeasure system called the SAFE STATE Project.
An achievable on-site defense for individuals, communities, and emergency services, the SAFE STATE countermeasure is a low-cost alternative to hardening the critical infrastructures.
