Some of the counter-MANPADS (Man Portable Air Defence System) equipment now being developed for commercial airliners is prohibitively expensive for smaller airlines.
The Air Systems business unit of BAE Systems has therefore been developing a new, more economic anti-missile system under a demonstrator programme jointly funded by the company and the UK MoD.
The system (originally designed for military applications and seen here on BAE's demonstrator Hawk) uses a tubular shield fitted to the jet pipe, which can be extended and retracted to reduce IR signature at 'off-tail' aspects.
To beat the system, the hostile SAM operator would have to get directly behind the aircraft restricting him to a narrow area of ground that can be easily monitored by policing and normal security arrangements.
Source: Flight Daily News
