Domestic flight rules to change

Isis allege this is the weapon that brought down an airliner. Photo / AP

Passengers on domestic flights could face a "very minor" cost increase as the Government considers extra security measures.

A review of aviation security will produce recommendations that Transport Minister Simon Bridges will soon take to Cabinet for approval.

Prime Minister John Key said changes to domestic airline security were likely, as it was a "could do better" area.

He was unable to discuss specifics, such as if baggage and passengers would be screened on smaller domestic flights.

The changes come after Isis released a photograph of a softdrink can bomb it claims it used to bring down a Russian passenger plane in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula last month, killing all 224 people on board.

The picture showed a yellow can of Schweppes Gold and what appeared to be other bomb components made of plastic and metal.

The photos could not be independently verified.

Mr Key, speaking to reporters in Manila, where he is with other world leaders for an Apec summit, said the security changes considered were "not in the way you might be thinking at the moment, but there are a couple of initiatives in regional airports that we might consider".

"It is not impossible [increased costs for domestic travellers], but if there was it would be very minor and I think people would have to see it in the context of an ever increasing security situation."

Mr Bridges said the review would look at all aspects of aviation security, "from cabin crew, the baggage, the cargo, the catering, obviously the ground crew and the like".
The threat of Isis and Paris terror attacks had been a topic of discussion among world leaders, Mr Key said, including during an informal meeting between himself and US President Barack Obama that lasted about 15 minutes.

"I was just asking...what he thought of Paris, the situation, what sort of intel they were getting.

"Generally speaking, he was making the point that they are a terrorist group that they are going to have to deal with in a certain kind of way...you just have got to make sure that you don't create bigger long-term issues."

Mr Key said he did not think there was a change of heart amongst countries that would result in a dramatic change in how to deal with Isis.

"Ultimately, they are a terrorist group and we need to degrade them, but some other major change of direction of the way you might deal with them may end up causing bigger long-term issues."

Mr Key said he expected a wide-ranging review of what happened at Sharm el-Sheikh International Airport prior to the October 31 crash.

His "gut instinct" was processes would have been very different from at a major airport such as LAX.

"They will try and work out if there was a fault in the system, where it was. There's obviously quite a bit of speculation that Isis got a person actually working there...there have been other reports that the level of scrutiny was not as good."