European airport deploys iFerret
ConvergenceAsia staff
05/10/2009

Stratech Systems, which delivers large-scale complex, real-time, mission-critical systems in the areas of intelligent Vision, intelligent Transport Systems and e-Systems for governments and businesses, has received a purchase order for the deployment of its iFerret intelligent Airfield/Runway Surveillance and Foreign Object and Debris (FOD) Detection System at an airport in Europe.

iFerret will be implemented at the airport to monitor FOD on the taxiway and apron – the world’s first apron deployment for FOD detection. The apron is the area where aircraft are parked, loaded/unloaded, refueled or boarded by passengers, while the taxiway links the runway to different areas of the airport.

Dr. David K.M. Chew, Executive Chairman of Stratech said, “FOD events do not occur only on runways. According to the UK Civil Aviation Administration, FOD events occur mostly on the apron (55%), followed by taxiway (30%) and runway (15%). Although fatality of FOD incidents is acknowledged on the runway, there is a need to manage occurrences on the apron and taxiway where FOD is much more frequent.”

iFerret utilises electro-optic sensors to detect and identify foreign objects on an airport’s air operations area, which includes the runway, taxiway and apron. Upon detection, the system raises an immediate alert and allows airport operators to visually verify the objects detected and initiate procedures to remove the objects from site.

FOD such as loose hardware, pavement fragments, rocks and even wildlife can pose a hazard to aircraft operations and passenger safety. With up to 70,000 incidents a year, FOD can cost each airport as much as US$20 million a year, which adds up to an estimated US$12 billion annually in direct and indirect costs.

“iFerret is the world’s first intelligent Vision-based FOD detection system. Following our pilot at Chicago O’Hare International Airport to monitor FOD on the runway and taxiway – the world’s first taxiway deployment of an FOD detection system, we are pleased to achieve another world’s first for apron deployment,” added Dr. Chew.

This project is scheduled to be completed in three to six months.

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