FAA Approves Elbit Fog-Conquering Technology

An Israeli-developed system for flying in conditions of limited visibility due to fog, storm or pollution has been approved by the U.S. Federal Aviation Authority (FAA), marking a breakthrough in commercial navigation, Globes reported on Tuesday.

The FAA has passed a new regulation that will permit the use of Elbit System’s ClearVision, which will enable jets to take off and land in poor visibility that would have forced delays or rerouting until now.

The new FAA regulation will soon take effect at all U.S. airports, and many countries around the world are expected to follow suit. Elbit would not comment on the monetary potential of the system, but clearly it is huge.

The system was initially designed for combat aircraft, and was subsequently adapted for civilian aircraft. It is based on a camera that screens a picture of the airport for the flight team on a special screen, even in difficult vision conditions.

A senior Elbit source said that the system meets the needs of many airlines around the world flying to destinations in North America where heavy fog prevails, and to Far Eastern destinations, such as China and India, where pilots frequently encounter vision problems caused by smog resulting from air pollution.