MIKE MARTIN
Information technology will revolutionise the aerospace and aviation industries, Boeing chairman Phil Condit said at the show yesterday. However, the realignment of Boeing to take advantage of the revolution did not mean it would be taking the commercial aircraft business less seriously.
In taking the "50,000ft view" of where the industry and Boeing was going, Condit said: "If we look over the next 20 to 30 years, the key item is the information revolution. It will change a great deal. I think the information revolution will be every bit as disruptive as the industrial revolution and it has as much potential."
The IT revolution will impact everything from safety and security to the convenience of the air traveller and defence systems, he added.
On safety, Condit said that controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) accidents accounted for 50% of air accidents. "Safety has increased by a factor of 10 in the last 30 years. Given GPS and 3D terrain databases, the industry should be able to provide a system that completely removes CFIT. That would be a 50% improvement." Safety could also be enhanced by ensuring that every airport in the world was equipped with precision guidance systems.
IT can also be deployed to ensure that air traffic management takes a "strategic rather than tactical" view of aircraft movements. Alluding to the 11 September terror attacks, Condit foresaw a future in which any aircraft that deviated from its flight plan would be identified immediately.
The pain of air travel at airport could also be alleviated by using IT. One example was in the use of biometrics-based smart cards for frequent travellers. Pre-clearance through customs and check-in would speed up movement through airports.
Passengers
In the aircraft, Condit said the Connections by Boeing programme, on show in a 737 demonstrator, would allows airline passengers to plug in computers and telecommunications devices, taking the wired world into the airliner seat, he said.
In defence, IT offered commanders the "ultimate high ground" by delivering complete situational awareness. "In the end, the changes that come about with IT will radically change the world and it will change our industry. It will change the way we control airplanes, the way we move through airports and it will change defence systems."
But the new vision for Boeing did not mean it was any the less committed to commercial aircraft, he insisted. The IT revolution will mean great changes in the way they are designed and built.
Answering questions, Condit said the current downturn was "huge" and he does not expect recovery until 2004. The drop in air passenger traffic was expected to be 13-14% compared to the 2% drop in traffic at the time of the Gulf War in the early 90s.
Source: Flight Daily News
