Northrop Grumman to show off anti-missile system

[question everything]

Northrop Grumman to show off anti-missile system

BY JIM SKEEN, Staff Writer
LA Daily News
Article Last Updated:01/15/2007 10:02:54 AM PST

LOS ANGELES - Northrop Grumman today will show off an anti-missile system it is testing on a modified MD-10 jetliner as part of an effort by the Department of Homeland Security to protect air travelers from terrorists. This afternoon at Los Angeles International Airport, Northrop Grumman will showcase the first of the jetliners it has equipped with an anti-missile system it calls Guardian. Under a $55.4 contract with the Department of Homeland Security, Northrop Grumman will build 12 Guardian missile defense systems; modify 11 MD-10 cargo aircraft to handle the system; and fly nine of the systems aboard MD-10 aircraft.

(snip)

Similar technology has been in use by the military since 2000. However, there are a number of challenges to making the system practical for commercial airlines, including reducing maintenance. Military systems require maintenance after a few hours of flying, something that is not practical in a commercial operation, officials said.

This phase of the development will include a live-fire test at the White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. The test will use a cable car riding wires between two mountain ranges and propane burners to simulate aircraft engines. The missile's warhead will be removed and replaced with a telemetry package to capture and relay test information. The test is slated to occur in late 2007.

(snip)

At 500 pounds, the system weighs about the equivalent of two passengers and their luggage, Pledger said. Flight testing at the Mojave Airport showed that the addition of the pod on the aircraft is well within the Department of Homeland Security's goal of adding less than 1 percent additional drag.

(snip)

http://www.dailynews.com/antelopevalley/ci_5017823

[orleans]

1. oh good for them

another one of those "my di*k is bigger than yours" contests

[brendan120678]

2. I think this actually sounds...

pretty interesting.

I'd love to see how the testing and redesign phases turn out.

[question everything]

5. FedEx Jet Flying With Anti-Missile System

FedEx Jet Flying With Anti-Missile System
AvWeb
January 18, 2007
By Mary Grady,
Contributing Editor

An anti-missile system is being tested aboard a FedEx MD-10 during its regular cargo flights, Northrop Grumman said this week. The airplane launched on Tuesday from Los Angeles International Airport with the Guardian system installed, starting the operational test and evaluation portion of the program, which is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). The tests will continue through March 2008. The Guardian system uses proven military technology to defend against shoulder-fired anti-aircraft missiles, Northrop Grumman said. The system detects an approaching missile and directs a non-visible, eye-safe laser toward it to disrupt its guidance signals. The DHS program aims to demonstrate the viability, economics and effectiveness of adapting existing military technology to protect commercial aircraft from shoulder-launched missiles. The Associated Press says a government report it obtained last summer concluded the Northrop Grumman prototype didn't meet the reliability standards set by the DHS, and it could be 20 years before every U.S. passenger airplane has anti-missile gear. It’s unclear just who would pay the billions of dollars to equip all 6,800 commercial U.S. airliners.

http://www.avweb.com/avwebflash/13_3b/briefs/FedEx_Jet_Anti-Missile_System_194252-1.html

[Rosa Luxemburg]

3. If a commercial airliner has one and is hijacked

how can the military shoot it down unless they have anti-anti-missiles

[rcdean]

4. This is the kind of test that brought down Flight 800

Only then they used a live missile fired from off-shore.

He're they're using a simulated missile mounted on a ski lift. How valid will this result be? Sounds like it will be just for the headlines.