AeroShield pod self defence system to outfit A320s
Bird Aerosystems announced on 19 December that it had been awarded a contract to outfit an undisclosed number of Airbus A320 aircraft with the firm’s AeroShield Pod self defence system.
The company states that its AeroShield Pod ensemble includes the firm’s Airborne Missile Protection System, integrated with Airbus/Hensoldt’s AN/AAR-60 Missile Launch Detection System which performs the ultraviolet detection of incoming surface-to-air missiles, one of Bird Aerosystems’ Missile Approach Confirmation Sensors and between two and four flare dispensers.
The company provided no further details regarding the number of AeroShield Pods to be supplied, the ownership of the aircraft that they will equip or when these systems will be declared operational on these aircraft. That said, it is possible that the installation has occurred on A320 aircraft configured for the transport of dignitaries or as transports expected to operate in areas where the risk of attack from infrared guided surface-to-air missiles remains significant.
Thomas Withington