Article from BTNews 6 JUNE 2016
Ray gun to combat drones
A British device said to be able to knock drones – or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) – out of the sky with radio signals is to be tested at airports in the US.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has granted approval for what is known as the 'anti-UAV defence system' (AUDS) to be tested to see if it is effective in preventing drones hitting aircraft.
The system, dubbed the 'ray gun', has been developed by Blighter Surveillance Systems Ltd of Saffron Walden, Chess Dynamics of Plymouth and Enterprise Control Systems of Wappenham, Northants.
Blighter says the equipment can detect small UAVs remotely and track and classify them before “providing the option to disrupt their activity". It works by jamming signals being sent to drones, allowing them to be controlled and landed.
The 'ray gun' is one of several alternatives being looked at by the FAA over worries that drones could accidentally or on purpose collide with aircraft or be used as airborne improvised explosive devices.
A BA aircraft en route to Heathrow in April was reported to have been struck by a drone but the incident was later downgraded amid reports the offending item could have been only a plastic bag (see BTN 25 April).
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