Aviation and Airport

Global Hawk flight suspended after communications failure
Northrop Grumman’s flagship UAV is grounded at Beale Air Force Base after craft failed to respond to landing directions; problem is ill-timed with company’s effort to win the Navy’s Broad Area Maritime Surveillance (BAMS) UAV contract; Global Hawk has a history of problems
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TSA approves GE's foot-scanner for Registered Traveler program
Planners say requiring shoe removal would waste the time the program is intended to save; Unisys takes a close look for its Reno operations, but Z-Backscatter technology may also do the trick; size of kiosks a critical issue
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US-VISIT to drop exit monitoring program
After a GAO report criticizes the border security program for technological and management failings, DHS decides to give up on tracking visitors’ egress; high costs of fingerprinting and facial scanning machines a major issue
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RTI and TAG join forces for a recoilless UAV gun
Recoilless Technologies International and Tactical Aerospace Group attempt to overcome the structural problems of cutting the size of UAVs; blowback from traditional weapons could damage craft; system will compete with Metal Storm’s stacked projectile approach
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BAE Systems to build U.K. UAV demonstrator
£124 million project the third in succession for the Ministry of Defense; UAV said to be similar to company’s Hawk system; first flight expected in 2010; Rolls Royce, QinetiQ, and Smiths Aerospace also involved; BAE is looking for British vendors
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Aurora Flight Sciences to test new Goldeneye 80 UAV
Federal government hopes for success in effort to encourage UAVs to run on standard diesel fuel; procurement efficiency at issue; Goldeneye 80 goes up against Honeywell UAV for DARPA funding, and both move forward into Phase 3 testing; winning UAV will support small units on tactical missions
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French launch UAVs to stop Israeli flights over Lebanon
International peacekeepers seek to ease tension over Israeli surveillance activities said to violate cease-fire; Israelis charge French with trying to undermine local UAV industry
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Sago succesfully tests iPat airport screening system
Thermal system screens passengers for weapons and explosives; unlike Z Backscatter, no privacy issues are implicated; handheld version also available; Sago just one of many companies succesfully nurtered by Trex Enterprises
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Heathrow begins new biometric tracking pilot
Passengers will scan their fingerprints at self-service kiosks or ticket counters; some will receive iris and face scans; only Emirites and Cathay Pacific flights to Dubai and Hong King effected; Accenture, IER, Raytheon, Sagem Defense Securite, and Sita provided the technology
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AS&E gets TSA go-ahead for a modified Z Backscatter screening system
Privacy issues delayed roll-out; an algorithm brushes away passengers’ most intimate secrets, and the video is immediately erased after processing; to ease embarassment concerns, monitoring will be done out of sight of the passengers
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Verified Identity gets the go-ahead to expand
DHS authorizations means the Brill-owned company can move in at airports in New York, California, Indiana, and Ohio; Lockheed to work as subcontractor for account and network management
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Raytheon wins contract to help TSA determine ideal emergency flight paths
$1.9 million Advanced Route Evaluation System will perform risk analysis on aviation routes by assessing such factors as aircraft type, fuel loads, and flight route; Tec-Masters lends a hand
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Boeing wins patent on uninterruptible autopilot system
New technology can be activated by the pilots, government agencies, even on-board sensors; not even a tortured pilot can give up control; dedicated electrical circuits ensure the system’s total independence
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British air force tests unmanned jetliner
Two-hour flight shows off Qinetic’s UAV command and control interface; the next step is to to fly the jetliner, a fighter jet, and a fleet of UAVs simulateously without stepping into a cockpit
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Portendo teams with Swedish government to develop explosives detectors
Deal signals growing European awareness of terrorist risk; Swedish Defense Research Agency will help improve Portendo’s nSure sensors; in return, Portendo will help FOI with their own ESSEX technology
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