The events at Glasgow Airport on 30 June serve to remind us just how vulnerable to terrorist attack we are.

Throughout the IRA bombing campaign from the 70s – 90s, Scotland was deemed to be off-limits (we were thought to be another repressed nation).

So the many bomb scares and bombings that affected major English cities such as London and Birmingham did not cross the border, and we could rightly claim to be a safe destination.

However, less than an hour after the jeep was driven into the airport front, the story hit the newswires across the world and that thing we had taken for granted was removed.

It is said that no publicity is bad publicity but undoubtedly it would have been better to have hit the headlines for more positive reasons. However, the fact that that no one (apart from the would-be terrorist) sustained any major injury is extremely lucky and certainly gives a more positive aspect to this potentially lethal incident.

It is ironic too that this man was a doctor more used to saving lives than trying to destroy them - a real life, but more sinister, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

Another thing that could not have happened if there had been loss of life is the humour. Already comedy shows have been cracking jokes about John Smeaton, the have a go hero of the hour who came to the aid of a police officer, not to mention the many related e-mails that are flying around the world. How long until a new phrase ‘to do a smeaton’ becomes listed in the Oxford English Dictionary?

But for Glasgow Airport, it is business as usual. Flying south for a meeting last week there was certainly heightened security and the road in front of the terminal remained closed, but inside, flights were checking in and travellers were still able to buy everything from cappuccinos to cosmetics. This, though, cannot be attributed only to good luck.

The airport will have had a full Business Continuity Plan (sometimes known as Disaster Recovery or Crisis Management) in place to help deal with such emergencies. The fact that the hapless suicide bomber was unable to penetrate the façade of the building is not simply fortuitous although it is likely now that airports will be additionally ring-fenced with heavy duty bollards to avoid any similar incidences in the future.

In the event of such external disruption to business, it is vital that SMEs particularly have Business Continuity Plans in place as they will provide a framework to an early return to business as usual. And as witnessed in Glasgow, be prepared to keep updating these plans as circumstances unfold.

It is yet to be seen what effect this incident and the finding of the two unexploded car bombs in London will have on future numbers of overseas visitors to the UK. But let’s hope that our Scottish pragmatism is seen as reassuring and contributes to our ability not to make a drama out of a crisis.