Goodrich Launches 'Icehawk' De-Icer As Firm Stresses Innovation at NBAA

Innovation could be the theme for Goodrich at this year's show, with the company showing a new ice detection system for the first time and talking up new brakes for the still-to-be-unveiled Cessna CJ3.

Goodrich's IceHawk is a wide-area ice detection system that uses infrared sensing to provide real-time images of frozen contaminants on aircraft surfaces.

The system scans an aircraft surface with a beam of polarized IR light and detects ice by analyzing the polarization of the reflected signal. When ice is present, the returned IR signal is unpolarized. A picture of the scanned surface is computed and shown on the IceHawk display with patches of contamination highlighted in red.

The system has the ability to "see through" materials such as de/anti-icing fluid, hydraulic fluid and fuel to detect frozen contaminant buildup underneath. The system can detect any frozen contaminant, including snow, frost, slush and ice.

IceHawk systems are available for deicing trucks using either open buckets or enclosed cabs, and in business aviation would typically be sold to FBOs. Enclosed cab designs allow the operator to obtain and analyze icing images without leaving the cab.

Showgoers walking the floor at NBAA this year will be able to actually try out the IceHawk system because Goodrich will have a 5.5-foot-long section of wing at its booth and will use a portable refrigeration unit to cause ice and other contaminants to build up on the wing throughout the week, according to Bill Walthall, Goodrich customer relations vp. Visitors can use the joystick controller coupled to the IceHawk IR scanner to see what ground crew personnel see on an aircraft wing in adverse conditions.

The IceHawk system is the only on-ground, wide-area ice detection system approved by the FAA to replace tactile inspection requirements, Goodrich says. The company expects the IceHawk system to be the first to receive certification to the new standard.

In other news, Goodrich will disclose in Orlando this week that it's been selected to supply the wheels and steel brakes for the new Cessna business jet, the CJ3-also expected to be announced by the airframer this week. Type certification of the CJ3 is to be complete in the second quarter of 2004. Goodrich provides both steel and carbon brakes for many other Cessna aircraft, including the entire Citation business jet family.

"We believe our focus on continuous improvement and customer satisfaction has been key to our achieving Growth Supplier status with Cessna," says Tim Dumbauld, Goodrich vp for regional, business and military markets.

Goodrich's SmartProbe Air Data System flew successfully earlier this year on the first flight of the Embraer 170 aircraft. The SmartProbe system is currently in use on several military aircraft, but the Embraer flight marked the first use of the SmartProbe architecture on a commercial aircraft in production. Goodrich is providing several other major systems for the Embraer 170, including total air temperature sensors, windshield-wiper systems, ice detectors and stall warning system stick-shakers.

By Barry Rosenberg