El Al Fits Fleet With Anti-Missile System
Airwise: El Al Israel Airlines has installed anti-missile systems on all its planes, becoming the first commercial carrier to field a protected fleet amid growing fears of aviation terrorism, security sources said on Wednesday.
They said aircraft were equipped with the Israeli-made "Flight Guard", which automatically releases diversionary flares if a heat-seeking missile is detected by on-board sensors.
Development of the system, which costs around USD$1 million per unit, was stepped up after an Israeli passenger jet survived an attempt by al Qaeda to shoot it down over Kenya in 2002.
Industry analysts say other airlines could consider such measures too costly and unreliable. The Bush administration has encouraged feasibility studies on similar onboard systems but said it may opt to fit airports with missile defences instead.
El Al, Israel's national carrier and largest airline, declined comment, saying it did not discuss security issues.
It was not immediately clear if five planes leased by El Al had received the Flight Guard as well as its own 29 aircraft.
El Al is already regarded as the world's most security-conscious airline due to its stringent anti-hijacking precautions -- such as armed guards on all flights and very close pre-flight checks on passenger lists.
Industry analysts say fitting military equipment to civilian planes would pose cost problems for many airlines, since such systems must be constantly serviced.
The likelihood of a shoulder-fired missile actually downing a passenger jet is considered to be remote, as such aircraft are built to withstand the loss of an engine.
An Airbus A300 cargo plane flown by DHL survived a missile strike over Baghdad in 2004.
Aviation sources said Flight Guard is embedded out of sight in the plane's body to avoid drawing attention. Its flares are designed not to be a fire risk if they land in built-up areas.
Though Flight Guard would be effective against heat-seeking missiles like the SA-7, produced in the former Soviet Union and widely available in the developing world, it would not be able to beat radar-guided missiles such as the US-made Stinger.
Flight Guard was developed by state-owned Israel Military Industries and the Elta defence firm -- a unit of state-owned Israel Aircraft Industries. El Al began installing the system in its planes in 2004, the transport ministry said at the time.
They said aircraft were equipped with the Israeli-made "Flight Guard", which automatically releases diversionary flares if a heat-seeking missile is detected by on-board sensors.
Development of the system, which costs around USD$1 million per unit, was stepped up after an Israeli passenger jet survived an attempt by al Qaeda to shoot it down over Kenya in 2002.
Industry analysts say other airlines could consider such measures too costly and unreliable. The Bush administration has encouraged feasibility studies on similar onboard systems but said it may opt to fit airports with missile defences instead.
El Al, Israel's national carrier and largest airline, declined comment, saying it did not discuss security issues.
It was not immediately clear if five planes leased by El Al had received the Flight Guard as well as its own 29 aircraft.
El Al is already regarded as the world's most security-conscious airline due to its stringent anti-hijacking precautions -- such as armed guards on all flights and very close pre-flight checks on passenger lists.
Industry analysts say fitting military equipment to civilian planes would pose cost problems for many airlines, since such systems must be constantly serviced.
The likelihood of a shoulder-fired missile actually downing a passenger jet is considered to be remote, as such aircraft are built to withstand the loss of an engine.
An Airbus A300 cargo plane flown by DHL survived a missile strike over Baghdad in 2004.
Aviation sources said Flight Guard is embedded out of sight in the plane's body to avoid drawing attention. Its flares are designed not to be a fire risk if they land in built-up areas.
Though Flight Guard would be effective against heat-seeking missiles like the SA-7, produced in the former Soviet Union and widely available in the developing world, it would not be able to beat radar-guided missiles such as the US-made Stinger.
Flight Guard was developed by state-owned Israel Military Industries and the Elta defence firm -- a unit of state-owned Israel Aircraft Industries. El Al began installing the system in its planes in 2004, the transport ministry said at the time.
posted by Marko at 2/15/2006 11:53:00 PM
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