Experienced Pilots Advancing Safety (EPAS) today warned that recent actions by Chinese authorities pose a clear and present danger to U.S. aviation personnel and expose a dangerous vacuum in American leadership at the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).
Effective March 23, Hong Kong authorities, under the guise of national security, gained expanded powers to compel airline crew, transiting personnel, and other travelers to unlock and surrender access to their personal electronic devices. Refusal can result in detention, fines, imprisonment, and seizure of equipment. For U.S. flight crews, this is not a theoretical concern; it is an operational and security threat that opens a direct pathway to sensitive corporate systems, proprietary airline data, and information tied to U.S. regulatory and security agencies such as the FAA, DOT, DHS, and TSA.
“American crews are being placed in harm’s way in legal environments that do not respect U.S. standards for privacy, due process, or data protection,” EPAS stated. “This is a real-world strategic vulnerability that goes straight to national security and the integrity of our aviation system.”
EPAS argues that this threat is being magnified by a self‑inflicted failure: the lack of strong, confirmed U.S. leadership at ICAO, the U.N. body that sets global aviation rules and norms. With no Senate‑confirmed Ambassador and an underpowered U.S. presence, the United States is not writing the rules – it is forced to react to them after they are set by others.
“When the United States is absent at ICAO, competitor nations fill the vacuum,” EPAS continued. “They advance their own strategic, economic, and regulatory agendas, often at the expense of American operators, American workers, and American security.”
EPAS is calling for immediate action.
“We need strong patriotic leadership at ICAO, and that leader is Captain Jeffrey Anderson,” the organization said. “President Trump has twice nominated Captain Anderson, but powerful forces seek to undermine President Trump’s agenda, including unions such as the Air Line Pilots Union through its political proxies. Senator Risch, please do what is in AMERICA’S best interest and confirm Captain Anderson NOW.”
According to EPAS, confirming Captain Anderson and fully resourcing the U.S. mission to ICAO is not symbolic diplomacy – it is operational necessity. It is how the United States protects its crews, safeguards sensitive information, and prevents international aviation policy from being written in ways that disadvantage American airlines and flight crews.
“The risk is real,” EPAS concluded. “Continued inaction is a choice – and it is a choice America cannot afford to make.”
Experienced Pilots Advancing Safety (EPAS)
1235 Pennsylvania Avenue, Suite 5002
Washington, DC 20003