Aviation and Airport

New emergency air command goes on-line next week
SCATANA to be replaced with ESCAT; change devolves authority to declare emergencies to regional NORAD commands; shift in responsibility intended to permit commanders to restrict regional flights so as to avoid costly national shutdowns
- Read more
GAO to take a second look at airport perimeter security
Upcoming investigation will see if any progress has been made since a scathing 2004 report; undercover GAO teams may attempt to breach airport security to test response; TSA says its hands are clean and welcomes the chance to prove itself
- Read more

Boeing Australia to support Insitu's ScanEagle UAV
Deal representative of the close relationship between the two companies; Boeing to provide reconnaissance and surveillance services; ScanEagle, currently deployed by U.S. forces in Iraq, finds an admirer in the Australian high command
- Read more
Security procedures tightened at Bangkok airport
Officials promise to make Suvarnabhumi a model of airport security; move follows New Years bombings; authorities take issue with Loxley-ICTS and threaten to cancel the security company’s contract; with Thai officials getting serious about security, opportunities abound for industry
- Read more

TSA to permit advertising at airport security checkpoints
In exchange for providing plastic bins, companies will be allowed to place advertisements inside them; test run began in July at LAX; TSA to brief industry on 11 January
- Read more
Unisys and Verant certified to join Registered Traveller program
TSA grants its approval after both companies complete successful pilot programs across the country; Unisys looks to expand operations to Reno/Tahoe; certification adds momentum to an important project, but early leader Verified Identity loses potential market share
- Read more

Thales Raytheon received $50 million BCS-F contract
Bitter feeling over the initial Battle Control System-Fixed contract does not stop the Air Force from handing over an additional $50 million; system is intended to improve military response to aircraft security problems; BCS-F seen as long behind schedule; cost-overruns a serious concern
- Read more
Aussie doctor stopped with bleeding luggage
Plastic surgeon tries to check bloody garments and instruments; much to the disgust of local officials, a leak betrays him
- Read more

Marines abandon Dragon Eye UAV for the Raven B
Although the Dragon Eye has seen its share of successes, high cost and inability to handle strong winds sent the Marines back to the drawing board; AeroVironment’s Raven B, already popular with the Army, looks to take up the mission at lower cost
- Read more
Infant X-rayed at LAX
Nervous mother puts child in plastic container; baby is cleared for radiation exposure; no bombs found
- Read more

Man breaks into Raleigh-Durham airport, takes onboard nap
Intoxicated suspect climbs security fence and boards a plane; discovery leads to cancelled flight; man says he “was going to take a flight”
- Read more
Northrop to supply Navy with two Fire Scout UAV helicopters
$16.2 million contract modification a good sign for this intriguing craft; based on the Schweizer Model 333 manned helicopter, Fire Scout is especially suited for reconnaissance, mine detection, and as a communications node for future warfare applications
- Read more

Dayton positions itself as a sensor center
Ohio’s Third Frontier Commission awards $28 million for the development of a sensor technology research center; business partners include Woolpert, General Dynamics, UES, YSI, and L-3 Communications Cincinnati Electronics
- Read more
DATEL installs Jordanian immigration control system
Jordan Electronic Gate matches passenger fingerprints against a smart card; self-monitoring system constantly updates databases; planners hope to expand program to non-Jordanian citizens
- Read more
Nuctech to install liquid bomb detectors ahead of China Olympics
Not coincidentally, contract goes to company headed by the son of China’s president; terms are undisclosed, but 147 airports will receive scanners normally priced at $200,000 per unit; company already controls 90 percent of the domestic scanner market
- Read more

More headlines