Textron Inc. isn’t using camouflaged soldiers at the borders and coastlines of the United States and other countries to protect the nation. No, instead its using the Terrain Commander, a remote surveillance system used to secure borders, airports and nuclear power plants.
The Commander, which uses a combination of passive and electro-optical infrared sensors and communication and mapping technologies, captures and relays an image and sends it to a central command station or post.
Textron’s Terrain Commander is one example of the several high-tech pieces of equipment that are being developed by Textron to support homeland security.
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As a multi-billion dollar business with more than 49,000 employees in 40 countries, Providence-based Textron has made its mark in the military sector with its innovative systems and equipment through its various divisions.
Textron Systems, which develops and manufactures search and rescue boats, armored vehicles and remote surveillance has seen a slew of activity in the last few years.
Terrain Commanders, for instance, are in use by the Australian defense organization as part of its ground-based surveillance strategy. Once the Commander detects the threat of vehicles, low-flying aircrafts and people, it captures an image and sends it back to the command post.
John Boness, vice president of business development at Textron Systems, said the company became aware of the fact that the Australian government was in need of such a system.
Last year, Textron was awarded a $20-million contract to deliver the Terrain Commanders to the Australian government.
“In their northern territory they have a populated area where they are facing Indonesia and are worried about protecting that boarder from intrusion,” Boness said.
“It’s in the initial test phase right now,” he added. “Six of them to date are currently being tested for use in Australia.”
The Commanders were a good fit for the government because they could be left unattended for long periods of time and are ruggedized for temperature extremes including rain, humidity and other changes in the atmosphere.
Earlier this month the company was invited to demonstrate the Commander at the Force Protection Equipment Demonstrations, a program initiated by Gen. Richard B. Myers, chairman of the joint chiefs of staff, to provide Department of Defense leaders with a forum to learn about protection equipment. The event was held at the Quantico Marine Corps Base in Virginia.
“It’s a little soon to get specific,” said Boness, referring to getting a contract based on the demonstration. “There was a lot of people and a lot of interest. We are very hopeful.”
The company is also hoping to add new features to its system including a chemical sensor that would detect the presence of chemical agents. Textron is talking with other companies that would provide the chemical sensor components – ones that are “pretty readily adaptable.”
Textron Marine & Land, a division of Textron Systems based in New Orleans, has recently rolled out a prototype of its new Peacekeeper II vehicle. The Peacekeeper is an armored vehicle that was developed to be used on several land missions including riot control, counter terrorist activities, SWAT operations and domestic law enforcement. The Peacekeeper has been used in Germany, Bosnia, Kosovo and Iraq because of its armored features. The vehicle can repel up to 7.62 armor piercing ammunition and its specially made tires can run flat for an additional 30 miles after being punctured.
In water, it’s Textron Systems’s Motor Lifeboat that rules the seas. The MLB, a rugged, aluminum rescue boat, is used by the U.S. Coast Guard in rescue missions. The boat’s safety fitting mounted in different areas around the hull allows rescuers to remain harnessed to the boat during rough seas.
MLBs can withstand 20-foot breaking waves at three times the force of gravity, according to the company, and can tolerate hurricane winds.
If, during a rescue mission, the boat capsizes, it automatically self-rights by turning itself around in less than 10 seconds with all of its machinery operational.
Since Sept. 11, the MLB has been used in more than 12,000 hours of missions in support of homeland security operations.
Boness said Textron has also been in talks with organizations to use the Terrain Commander in homeland security applications.
“A system like this has applications where you have longer borders and ought to have border surveillance,” he said. “Another would be for protection of remote nuclear sites and power sites.”
Textron has systems that protect the area from both land and sea and it does not leave out protection from the air.
Bell Helicopter, also a Textron Company, has developed the Bell Eagle Eye, an unmanned tiltrotor aircraft. The Eagle Eye can find moving targets from 80 to 100 nautical miles away in minutes, according to the company.
It’s the Eagle’s onboard system that separates it from the rest.
The Bell Eagle Eye has an onboard infrared system that operates during the day and at night. The system sends live pictures back to shipboard operators and can operate with a pre-programmed, computer control flight system that instructs it on where to go, how fast and how high. The aircraft is monitored with a controller via a computer that can order a change in direction remotely and with the “click of a mouse.”
As the country puts more of an emphasis on protecting and securing the country’s
key sites, borders and coastlines, Steve Loranger, Textron’s chief operating
officer, said they will be looking for “technology-advanced solutions to these
national security challenges.”
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