Northop's 'Guardian' System To Counter MANPADS

An MD-10 aircraft in commercial service with FedEx departed Los Angeles International Airport today sporting Northrop Grumman Corporation's new Guardian system. This is the beginning of the operational test and evaluation portion of the US Department of Homeland Security's (DHS) Counter-Man Portable Air Defense Systems (C-MANPADS) program.

As part of Phase III of the DHS-sponsored program, a Northrop Grumman-led industry team will complete production of Guardian missile defense systems for installation on MD-10 aircraft. During the test and evaluation effort, which concludes in March 2008, FedEx will fly nine MD-10 aircraft equipped with the Guardian system.

Northrop bills the Guardian system as a defensive aid utilizing proven military technology to defend against the threat posed by anti-aircraft, shoulder-fired missiles. Components of the system are mounted in a bathtub-sized pod on an aircraft's lower fuselage. Once launched, the system should detect the missile and direct a non-visible, eye-safe laser to its seeker head disrupting guidance signals.

"This milestone marks an important event for Northrop Grumman and the aviation industry. For the first time, we will be able to collect valuable logistics data while operating Guardian on aircraft in routine commercial service," said Robert L. DelBoca, vice president and general manager of Northrop Grumman's Defensive Systems Division. "We stand ready to protect America's flying public with the proven technology that we supply to our warfighters worldwide in operational theater."

As ANN reported, the program has been under development and testing over the last 16-months. According to Northrop, the operational test environments included the use of a ground-based electronic missile surrogate to simulate the launch of a shoulder-fired missile toward an aircraft during takeoff and landing. The tests were performed on MD-11, MD-10 and B-747 aircraft. Northrop says the system functioned as designed, automatically detecting the simulated launch and mock missile.

The company says its Guardian system makes use of multi-band laser and other technologies from the its military directional infrared countermeasures system, the only such protection system currently in production for the US military and several allied nations.

The Guardian system was developed as part of the DHS's initiative to protect commercial aircraft from attack MANPADs. The DHS program is focused on demonstrating the viability, economics and effectiveness of adapting existing military technology to protect commercial aircraft from terrorist threats.

FMI: www.northropgrumman.com, www.fedex.com