Rockwell system gets wires crossed and cries wolf: FAA orders defective safety units recalled from airlines.Rockwell system gets wires crossed and cries wolf FAA orders defective safety units recalled from airlines The Federal Aviation Administration Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), component of the U.S. Department of Transportation that sets standards for the air-worthiness of all civilian aircraft, inspects and licenses them, and regulates civilian and military air traffic through its air traffic control has ordered a division of Rockwell International Rockwell International was the ultimate incarnation of a series of companies under the sphere of influence of Willard Rockwell, who had made his fortune after the invention and successful launch of a new bearing system for truck axles in 1919. Corp. to pull its collision avoidance system (1) See adaptive cruise control. (2) A passenger car system that detects objects on the road that the driver may not be able to see. Using radar or infrared sensors, distant objects, such as a deer crossing the road at night or in a fog, are projected onto the out of about 200 commercial airliners around the world because of engineering defects. Rockwell's Collins Air Transport division in Cedar Rapids Cedar Rapids, city (1990 pop. 108,751), seat of Linn co., E central Iowa, on the Cedar River; inc. as a city 1856. The second largest city in Iowa, it is named for the surging rapids in the river. , Iowa, was ordered to take the system out of the aircraft after the FAA said it discovered the device was giving false warning signals. The system, which was ordered into commercial aircraft last year by the FAA, is designed to warn pilots of a potential mid-air collision A mid-air collision (MAC) is an aviation accident where two or more aircraft come into unplanned contact during flight. Due to the high velocities involved in modern aviation, this usually results in very severe damage (if not total destruction) of all aircraft involved. . According to FAA spokesman Fred Farrar, the Collins device was giving off false alarms, forcing pilots to make sudden and unnecessary adjustments in altitude, direction or speed. Farrar said only the Collins systems were ordered out of the aircraft. Similar systems are made by Bendix/King Avionics and Honeywell Inc., but pilots have not reported problems with those devices, said Farrar. A spokesman for Collins, Terry Francisco, said an engineering defect in the device's software caused the problem and it is being corrected. He said all the devices have been pulled from the aircraft and will be delivered back to the airlines with new, corrected software. Among the airlines that carried the Collins system were United, America West, MGM MGM in full Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc. U.S. corporation and film studio. It was formed when the film distributor Marcus Loew, who bought Metro Pictures in 1920, merged it with the Goldwyn production company in 1924 and with Louis B. Mayer Pictures in 1925. Grand Air, Hawaiian, TWA TWA Time-weighted average, see there , Pan Am, Japan Air Lines, Air France and Air Canada, said Francisco. Farrar said the problem will not necessarily affect Collins' future ability to sell traffic alert and collision avoidance systems to airlines. He said the agency has not issued an order that airlines should avoid installing the Collins system. Farrar said the systems cost about $100,000 each. Francisco said the collision avoidance system is a major project for the division, which last year had $1.3 billion in sales. "There was never a safety question involved. It was giving out incorrect information that was quite unnerving un·nerve tr.v. un·nerved, un·nerv·ing, un·nerves 1. To deprive of fortitude, strength, or firmness of purpose. 2. To make nervous or upset. to pilots," said Francisco. He said the false warnings generally appeared in areas with heavy air traffic, like around O'Hare International Airport O'Hare International Airport is an airport located in Chicago, Illinois, United States, 17 miles (27 km) northwest of the Chicago Loop. It is the largest hub of United Airlines (whose headquarters is in downtown Chicago) and the second-largest hub of American Airlines (after in Chicago. He said the company knew of between 20 and 30 reports from pilots of false alarms given off by the Collins version of the collision avoidance system. "The customers (airlines) have been understanding of the problem and we are confident that we will have no further problems. This is a very complex system and the customers understand that," said Francisco. He said airlines have not canceled orders for the Collins system since the FAA issued its order earlier this month. Rockwell International, an aerospace, defense, electronics and graphics company, is based in El Segundo. |
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