QinetiQ's runway debris detection trial underway at London Heathrow Airport

A radar system designed to reduce any potential risk of runway debris being undetected is currently undergoing a two-week trial at Heathrow - the world's busiest international airport. QinetiQ's Tarsier ^TM radar system is able to detect potentially dangerous items of debris at a range of up to two kilometres. Working alongside BAA, QinetiQ is working on further refinements to the technology before an expected launch next year (2005).

Tarsier is based on high-resolution millimetre wave radar and can operate 24/7 in all weathers. It is able to detect very small objects, such as a suitcase wheel or a metal nut, to within an accuracy of three metres at a range of up to two kilometres. Such items, known as Foreign Objects and Debris (FOD), can pose a safety hazard for aircraft if undetected. The National Aerospace FOD Prevention, Inc. (NAFPI) also calculate that FOD damage costs the aviation industry an annual global industry bill in the region of $4billion and cause delays at airports.

The equipment is being trialled at Heathrow alongside the airport's existing runway checks to see how it can enhance current procedures.

Ian Taylor, Head of Group Airfield Operations for BAA, said: "Safety is our main priority and we already have a number of effective safety measures in place to ensure that the runways are kept clear of debris at all times. BAA is at the forefront of evaluating and testing new technology and we are looking at QinetiQ's Tarsier^TM radar system to see if it can further improve on our current safety measures.

Duncan Valentine, Managing Director Transport Markets at QinetiQ, said: "QinetiQ has a huge inventory of technology solutions of which Tarsier is just one. The trial at Heathrow, coupled with the system's successful demonstration at Vancouver International Airport, is now rightly attracting worldwide attention. QinetiQ is providing innovative solutions to important problems and safety is a hallmark of much of the work that we do. QinetiQ is gratified to work with such a modern and forward-looking organisation such as BAA."

Checking for FOD is currently performed manually at airports, which is time consuming at busy airports such as Heathrow, and sometimes difficult in bad weather and at night.

A similar successful trial conducted at Vancouver International Airport and attended by Nav Canada¹ in June saw safety crews at the airport detecting, locating and retrieving objects from the runway within five minutes. Current operating practices at airports around the world are based on vehicle-based crews conducting visual checks of the runway at least four times a day and as and when necessary.

Tarsier has also been trialled at BAA's Southampton Airport and at Boscombe Down airfield, operated by QinetiQ on behalf of the UK's Ministry of Defence. Other potential uses include perimeter security, surface movement tracking, runway incursion and bird detection.


Heathrow Airport
Heathrow Airport has two runways which deal with around 1300 flights a day. The airport serves 66 million passengers a year and serves 180 worldwide destinations. It is currently the world's busiest international airport.

¹ Nav Canada operates Canada's civil air navigation service