Thu, May 19, 2005
Civil Air
Patrol’s national capital wing is helping the Air Force test
its new visual warning system for pilots, a security measure set to
become operational over the Washington, D.C., area on May 21,
officials said.
The system signals pilots who fly into the D.C. area’s air
defense identification zone with low-level laser beams in an
alternating red-red-green light sequence to alert them they are
flying without approval in designated airspace.
Pilots who receive the warning must immediately contact
local air traffic control and fly their aircraft out of the no-fly
zone.
The ground-based visual warning system was developed by the
North American Aerospace Defense Command specialists in
coordination with people at the Federal Aviation Administration and
the Air Force Rapid Capabilities Office.
The lasers are eye-safe and nonhazardous.
CAP, the all-volunteer
civilian auxiliary of the Air Force, is scheduled for missions May
21. CAP will use its low- and slow-flying aircraft to pose as
intruders into no-fly zones near the nation’s capital. Most
of the aircraft in CAP’s single-engine fleet of 550 are
Cessnas similar to the one that drifted into Washington’s
no-fly zone May 11 and spurred evacuations throughout the capital
city.
“This week we saw exactly what can happen when a pilot
flies into an unauthorized zone in the D.C. area,” said Maj.
Gen. Dwight Wheless, CAP national commander.
“Any such intrusion not only is a safety issue, but is
also disruptive for thousands of people who live and work in the
nation’s capital,” the general said.
“This new visual warning system will give pilots immediate
feedback when they are straying into a no-fly zone, and will be a
valuable new tool in our country’s homeland defense
program.”
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