Kollsman has become the first enhanced vision system (EVS) supplier
to win a contract from a big-jet carrier. Federal Express announced
here on Tuesday that it will equip more than 200 wide-body jets
with Kollsman's infrared EVS sensor and a brand-new Honeywell
head-up display (HUD) using liquid-crystal display (LCD) technology.
FedEx will fit EVS to its Airbus A300s and A310s, and Boeing MD-11s
and MD-10s (DC-10s retrofitted with glass cockpits). Certification
is due for 2006 and EVS-equipped aircraft are due in service in
2007. FedEx strategic projects manager Joel Murdock says that
the freight carrier wants to use EVS first to enhance situational
awareness, safety and reliability. The company will also work
within emerging FAA rules to get landing credit with EVS, allowing
its airplanes to land on more runways in lower minima.
The FedEx project virtually doubles Kollsman's EVS backlog. Federal
Express looked at competing systems, including less costly uncooled
sensors, before settling on Kollsman's high-performance wide-band
sensor. This is also the first order for an LCD HUD, which should
be more compact and less costly than the CRT-driven HUDS delivered
to date.
FedEx calls the new project "Magic Window"-the same
name that was used when the company first looked at EVS more than
20 years ago. EVS pioneer Glenn Connor, present at Tuesday's announcement,
was part of the University of Maryland team that made the first
EVS pitch to FedEx founder Fred Smith-on a Saturday afternoon
in 1979.
