The FAA has filed a proposal with the U.S. Department of Transportation that seeks special conditions that would allow FedEx aircraft to carry infrared countermeasures to defend against heat-seeking missiles. While this isn’t the first time that infrared countermeasures have been proposed for commercial aircraft, or even FedEx aircraft, the filing suggests the need for missile defenses even in the commercial airline sector still remains.
The FAA’s proposal states that “in recent years, in several incidents abroad, civilian aircraft were fired upon by man-portable air defense systems (MANPADS).” To counter this threat, the FAA seeks special conditions for FedEx to install a system “that emits infrared laser energy outside the aircraft as a countermeasure against heat-seeking missiles.” Currently, the FAA notes, airworthiness regulations for commercial aircraft lack safety standards for these systems.
A Northrop Grumman Directional Infrared Countermeasure system aboard a FedEx MD-10
The language in the filing suggests FedEx is seeking to install a Directional Infrared Countermeasure system, or DIRCM. These self-defense systems are now widespread among military transport aircraft and helicopters. Even fighters are now receiving the technology. They work by flashing modulated laser beams of infrared (IR) light at incoming missiles to blind their seekers or at the very least draw the incoming missiles away from the aircraft they are targeting.
The particular aircraft in the filing, the Airbus A321-200, is a long-range version of the A321 and is primarily used as a commercial passenger aircraft. FedEx does not yet operate the A321-200, although the aircraft is being eyed as a contender for future cargo operations by several major freight companies.
In 2004, Israeli airline El Al became the only commercial carrier to equip its aircraft with missile countermeasure systems, although that particular system was flare-based (expendable decoy), not a DIRCM system. Fears of the flares starting fires on the ground, as well as the volatile nature of handling them, prompted the airliner to later shift to the laser-based C-MUSIC system. C-MUSIC is also more effective against advanced threats in many scenarios.
Since 1970, the International Civil Aviation Organization has reported at least 42 civilian aircraft have been attacked with MANPADS systems. An Israeli airliner flying out of Mombasa, Kenya carrying 260 passengers was struck by shrapnel from a suspected MANPADS missile as it took off, but was able to safely land in Tel Aviv with minimal damage. In 2003, a DHL Cargo plane flying from Iraq to Bahrain was forced to make a harrowing emergency landing after a MANPADS struck its left wing.
Despite a severely damaged left wing and a total loss of hydraulic control, the three-man crew was able to return to Baghdad and land the aircraft, controlling it primarily by varying engine thrust.
The heavily damaged left wing of OO-DLL, the DHL-operated Airbus A300 struck by a missile in 2003
FedEx began testing anti-missile countermeasures aboard its aircraft as far back as 2006 when it installed Northrop Grumman’s pod-based Guardian DIRCM system, based on the AN/AAQ-24, aboard a McDonnell Douglas MD-10. Northrop Grumman collaborated with FedEx on the design of the FedEx-specific system in order to fit it aboard a canoe-shaped ventral pod that could be attached or removed in ten minutes and added as little drag as possible. It includes a laser turret/pointer and missile approach sensors that provide 360-degree warning and cueing for the laser turret.
That installation was part of the Department of Homeland Security’s Counter-MANPADS Program which sought to develop and demonstrate anti-missile systems for commercial aircraft. During the program, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) tested two different directional infrared countermeasure systems, the Northrop Grumman Guardian and the BAE Systems JetEye, against 29 MANPADS systems.
A Northrop Grumman Guardian pod mounted on an Air Atlanta Europe 747-300 leased to FedEx for testing
Over 16,000 flight hours of testing went into the DHS assessment, which found that both systems “met effectiveness requirements” and could defeat multiple missiles under many attack scenarios. DHS’s full assessment from 2010, which can be found online, is heavily redacted. The study concluded that airlines could integrate these DIRCM systems “at a considerable cost and with an impact to airline operations,” with a price tag of over $30 billion dollars to equip 3,600 aircraft. DHS also noted that export control relief would be needed before they could be installed and used internationally.
As the FAA’s filing suggests, though, these systems still pose at least some degree of threat to commercial air traffic. Given that FedEx is applying for special conditions to fit a DIRCM system aboard an aircraft they aren’t yet flying, it could be that the freight company is eyeing the system for use only in specific cases or routes. This would be a beneficial capability serving high-risk areas. With such little to go on other than the filing, however, it’s impossible to know the extent to which FedEx intends to use the system.
Source: The Drive