GRAHAM WARWICK / WASHINGTON DC
Cargo carrier chooses Kollsman system to equip Airbus A300/A310 and Boeing MD-10/MD-11 freighters from 2007
FedEx Express will be the first airline to equip its aircraft with an enhanced vision system (EVS), having selected the Kollsman infrared (IR) sensor and Honeywell head-up display (HUD) for its $35 million Magic Window programme. The US package carrier will equip 200 Airbus A300/A310 and Boeing MD-10/MD-11 freighters from 2007.
The EVS will be certificated on the MD-10 in the fourth quarter of 2006. Certification of the other types will follow at six- to nine-month intervals. FedEx anticipates its Airbus A380 freighters will be delivered with HUD and EVS fitted.
The principal benefit will be enhanced situational awareness in darkness or poor visibility on approach and during taxiing, says Joel Murdock, FedEx manager, strategic projects. The EVS advanced IR sensor presents an image projected on to any raster video-capable HUD or delivered to a head-down display (HDD), providing the pilot with a picture overlaying the outside view. Once it gains experience with EVS, FedEx will work with the US Federal Aviation Administration on reducing landing minima, he says. A question still remains as to whether a HDD for the copilot will also be required.
FedEx has selected Kollsman's EVS-II, a derivative of the 1-5micron cooled IR sensor. The company - a subsidiary of Israel's Elbit Systems - gained the first-ever EVS certification in 2001 in Gulfstream's GV. The carrier has selected a new digital HUD from Honeywell, which uses a projection liquid-crystal display (LCD) instead of the traditional cathode-ray tube.
Digital HUDs offer much improved projection reliability, and LCDs are better able to present high-resolution IR imagery, says Kevin Young, Honeywell director, air transport display systems.
The FAA is close to releasing a notice of proposed rulemaking on EVS that is expected to boost the market by allowing lower landing minima for EVS/HUD-equipped aircraft. Draft proposals suggest crews may be cleared to descend through decision height as low as 100ft (30m) above ground level, provided the runway is visible with EVS.
ADDITIONAL REPORTING BY ARIE EGOZI IN TEL AVIV
Source: Flight International
