KLIA to test new safety system
KUALA LUMPUR: Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA) has been selected to test the effectiveness of radio over fibre foreign object debris (FOD) detection system at Runway 2.
The FOD detection system, specifically called Linear-Cell Radar over Fibre FOD detection system, worth US$25 million (RM99.70 million), is a tripartite collaborative effort by Hitachi Kokusai Electric (HiKE), Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) and Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB).
The field trial, which is fully funded by the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications, Japan, will start this month over a three-year period until December 2020.
“KLIA, being the first airport in the world other than Narita International Airport, has embarked on the testing of radio over fibre FOD detection system at Runway 2,” said MAHB managing director Datuk Badlisham Ghazali in a statement yesterday.
The selection was made due to KLIA’s geographical suitability with its varied tropical weather in testing the robustness of the system.
Badlisham said the company would continue to embrace advanced aviation technology, making it noticeable on the map as an aviation technology innovator.
“KLIA is among the world’s busiest airports with an average aircraft movement of 32,000 monthly. We are also the first airport in the region to have a three-independent runway system with runway length of 4km,” he said.
Badlisham said the technology would enhance KLIA’s runway safety and surveillance measures, thus boosting its position as regional hub.