Advertisment

Angry over Birds, Planes and Accidents?

author-image
Abhigna
New Update

KOLKATA, INDIA: Apperently, Air India Flight faces emergency landing due to a bird hit (as reported on Sept 9, 2013) and Indigo flight returns to Agartala airport after bird-hit (on March 20, 2013), while there was a close shave for 296 passengers after bird hits Dubai-bound flight in Kolkata (reported on March 15, 2013). Axis Aerospace & Technologies Ltd (AAT), an Indian company offering solutions to Defence, Aerospace and Homeland Security needs, has highlighted these headlines as it launched their first ever Bird Detection & Monitoring Radar System (BDMRS) at the Defexpo 2014. This system has been developed to address the bird menace faced by aircrafts both civil and military, it says.

Advertisment

As the announcement explains ahead: Bird hits are the most menacing hazards faced by aircrafts globally. As per the latest statistics available with Airport Authority of India (AAI), 14 bird hits were recorded in 2012. In addition, the Indian Aviation industry loses over an estimate of Rs.20 crore annually due to bird hits. While traditional measures like bursting fire crackers, placing scare crows near the runways, regular trimming of grass and maintaining cleanliness near the perimeter walls of the airport has helped in bringing down incidents of bird hits, there is still scope to further minimize this risk using technology and such radar systems

The BDRMS is one such technology developed by AAT to prevent Bird Airstrike Hazards (BASH) in India. The system operates in the S Band and has a detection range of 15km for large birds and 8km for small birds. It can be deployed upto altitudes of 3000m. It is maintenance free and easily transportable by road.

The BDMRS, as claimed, not only manages bird airstrike hazards but is also helps in ornithological studies by habitat assessment, deriving trends and patterns of avian activity which can help in assessment of risks to flying and instituting permanent anti BASH measures. In addition, it has key technical features like data warehousing and mining, advanced analysis algorithms in risk assessment and warning systems.

"Axis Aerospace Technologies is committed to offer product and solutions which can seamlessly integrate into industry requirements. We provide holistic solutions and add value in the development process using our technical competency and industrial expertise. With BDMRS, we strive to offer Hi-Tech solutions to the Defence and Aerospace industry, protecting lives in the process." said Sudhakar Gande, Vice Chairman, Axis Aerospace & Technologies Pvt. Ltd.

AAT said its BDMRS has gone through successful field evaluation trials and is now ready for deployment.