More RFID Journal Sites: RFID Journal Espanol RFID Journal Brasil RFID Journal Events RFID Journal Awards
Aerospace NEWS
Text size:
T
T
T
American Eagle Puts RFID on Ground Fleet
Additionally, the AvRamp Wireless VMS will enable the airline to track GSEs in order to keep them out of harm's way—alerting drivers, for example, if they take a vehicle into a restricted area, such as an active runway, and in some cases automatically shutting the vehicle down. The system accomplishes this by using what's known as "geo-fencing"—in essence, an electronic map of boundaries that can be stored on the VAC, defining off-limits areas.
Impact sensors installed on the GSEs will report to the VAC whether a vehicle has been involved in a collision. "No one wants to report an accident," Ehrman says, "because they don't want to get into trouble, basically." In fact, in May 2007, ground workers covered up an accident in which a vehicle damaged a McDonnell Douglas DC-9's fuselage, according to media reports (see Report: Fuselage Damage on Northwest Flight Could Have Come From Baggage Handlers and DC-9 Depressurised After Ramp Crew Covered Up Tug Strike).
The Northwest Airlines jet was allowed to depart, and depressurized as it climbed through 20,000 feet. The pilots had to perform an emergency descent to 10,000 feet, then divert from the plane's flight path and land. Fortunately, no one was injured during the incident. "If our system had been installed," Ehrman notes, "it wouldn't have been up to the discretion of the driver and ground crew whether to report it."
American Eagle will also take advantage of the AvRamp Wireless VMS to monitor and track maintenance checks on each of its GSEs. Every time a driver starts up a vehicle, the VAC will walk the driver, via a series of prompts, to check the vehicle's basic mechanics. If there is a problem, the driver can instruct the tag to automatically notify the maintenance crew.
The AvRamp Wireless VMS is the latest evolution of a solution I.D. Systems tested at an RFID trial at Newark Liberty International Airport, intended to track baggage-loaders, fueling trucks and other maintenance vehicles. That trial, as well as one at JAXPORT, the Jacksonville, Fla., seaport, was part of a $4.1 million program funded by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to test RFID technology (see TSA Endorses RFID for Airport Vehicles).
more Aerospace articles
Impact sensors installed on the GSEs will report to the VAC whether a vehicle has been involved in a collision. "No one wants to report an accident," Ehrman says, "because they don't want to get into trouble, basically." In fact, in May 2007, ground workers covered up an accident in which a vehicle damaged a McDonnell Douglas DC-9's fuselage, according to media reports (see Report: Fuselage Damage on Northwest Flight Could Have Come From Baggage Handlers and DC-9 Depressurised After Ramp Crew Covered Up Tug Strike).
The Northwest Airlines jet was allowed to depart, and depressurized as it climbed through 20,000 feet. The pilots had to perform an emergency descent to 10,000 feet, then divert from the plane's flight path and land. Fortunately, no one was injured during the incident. "If our system had been installed," Ehrman notes, "it wouldn't have been up to the discretion of the driver and ground crew whether to report it."
The AvRamp Wireless VMS is the latest evolution of a solution I.D. Systems tested at an RFID trial at Newark Liberty International Airport, intended to track baggage-loaders, fueling trucks and other maintenance vehicles. That trial, as well as one at JAXPORT, the Jacksonville, Fla., seaport, was part of a $4.1 million program funded by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to test RFID technology (see TSA Endorses RFID for Airport Vehicles).
