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I was reading another question on this site when I saw this answer.
As you can see in the photo I copied below, this private jet has no cockpit door. On commercial aircraft the bullet-proof cockpit door is seen as the last line of defense against would-be hijackers.
What security measures are in place to prevent unauthorized passenger access to the controls of private jets? Even though they are smaller and carry fewer people, a G650 or BBJ pointed in the wrong place can do a lot of damage.
The same thing that prevents the passengers in your car from hijacking it and using it to run people down or drive it through a mall: It's your private car and you generally know the people that you let in to it.
The same applies to private aircraft.
What security measures are in place to prevent unauthorized passenger access to the controls of private jets?
None. The passengers outnumber the pilots, and unlike commercial jets are not outnumbered by passengers who prefer the original scheduled route to the new one.
It would also be very easy to arrange pickup at a quiet airstrip, kill the crew, stuff the bodies in a car trunk and do the whole flight without them.
The reason this isn't much of a concern is because small jets have neither the mass nor fuel capacity to do anywhere near the amount of damage possible with an airliner. As an example, when I was in college a light aircraft hit a building on approach to the airport, and nobody noticed. The building was the city hospital, the plane struck an empty floor and sat there with the tail sticking out. ATC wondered where it went, asked the next inbound to have a look, and then phoned the building. Staff went to the appropriate room and extracted the injured (but not dead) pilot and passengers.
The difference in security measures is due to the difference in the passengers.
Commercial airlines could carry almost anyone as passengers. Although some amount of security is done on the ground, and in the air, a cockpit door is still a useful line of defense. It's difficult to verify the intentions or capabilities of everyone that will ever be a passenger on the plane. Also, aside from limited circumstances, there is no reason for anyone from the cabin to be accessing the cockpit.
Private jets are different, because they are just that; private. A business or individual has the responsibility to clear their passengers before a flight. If they feel that there may be an issue, they can certainly have a cockpit door. But that situation is not normal. On a private jet, the passengers may comprise of the owner and his or her guests. As a matter of courtesy they may want to visit the cockpit. On a business flight, the circumstances would be similar.
As paul pointed out, these planes typically don't have the range or size to be capable of the same things an airliner would be. And the larger the plane, the larger the price tag. This would cost much more than just a commercial ticket, which also serves as a form of security.
Large jets will also have additional security added: What are the security measures preventing someone from chartering a 747 and using it to commit a terrorist attack?
In your picture, the door is currently open. It is most definitely there, but probably not re-enforced as commercial airline doors are.
Very little physically prevents a passenger from entering the cockpit on a private charter.
Generally, with private planes, security is done on the ground. The charter company does whatever diligence they feel is necessary to know their guests and their intentions before boarding.
Commercial airlines obviously cannot do extensive checks on all their passengers, but they do cross-check against lists like the No-Fly list.
While secured cockpit doors are not required on chartered or corporate aircraft, they do have a few security measures which are the same as those found on airliners to deter criminal activity or hijacking by passengers aboard the aircraft:
Security screenings: Large aviation charter companies will subject travelers to TSA screenings, involving metal detectors and x-ray luggage that they carry board.
Higher class clientele: Travelers aboard private jets and charted aircraft generally are wealthy individuals, or well-connected ones usually are not up for causing that kind of major crime aboard an aircraft.
Traveler reputation amongst charter companies: as mentioned earlier large scale criminal activity by most private jet flyers is rare. But there can be cases of obnoxious passengers being rude or abusive with the flight crews and causing minor property damage. This is particularly troublesome with celebrities, musicians, professional athletes, etc. That kind of antisocial behavior will be quickly curbed as such people develop a reputation amongst flight crews and charter companies, who have quite long and vivid memories. The bottom line is if you don’t want to travel by car, bus, or amongst other “little people” on an airliner, be kind to your flight crews and they’ll be kind to you.
The fear of the Law: Causing trouble aboard an aircraft or anything that could be interpreted as a violation of FAR 91.13 can carry sentences of up to 10 years in prison, and fines as great as $250,000. Aircraft hijacking is a capital offense under the US code.
Flight crews pack heat: Yes some of them are armed with guns and will shoot you if they believe you are an immediate threat to the aircraft or other passengers.
To prevent business jet or charter flight hijacking from private jet terminal or Fixed Base Operator (FBO) are very difficult because
Money prevents the hijacking.
Hijackers generally can’t afford to charter a private jet like the one shown. And, people with the money to be able to afford that type of flight can afford to go wherever they want on a regular airline flight anyway. If the passenger is the pilot’s boss, and the boss says to change the destination mid-flight, it’s not hijacking. It’s customer service. Otherwise, how would an unauthorized person get on the plane without the pilots’ knowledge?
Now, kidnapping is another story. But, that would entail kidnapping the pilots before they even get to the plane. Or rushing the plane while it’s on the ground. Then, the hijackers would be putting their lives and the success of their plan in the hands of one or two desperate pilots with nothing to lose.
And, theft would make any cockpit door pointless and arbitrary.
Something like this actually did happen in 1994, although it was a cargo aircraft and not private: FedEx 705
A soon to be fired FedEx employee riding on a cargo DC10 tried to take over the flight and kill the flight crew by attacking them with a hammer and a speargun, so he could crash the plane. Being a cargo flight with only company employees on board, typical commercial safeguards were not in place, nor was the flight deck secured.
After a bloody fight, and some radical maneuvers to unbalance the attacker by the copilot, who was partially disabled due to a fractured cranium (had the DC10 almost inverted at one point), the attacker was subdued and the flight landed safely despite the impaired condition of the pilots and also being 16 tons overweight.
All of the flight crew survived, although none ever flew commercially again, due to cranial injuries from hammer blows.
In this case, the bravery and fortitude of the flight crew stopped a potential disaster.
