Israel’s Elbit Systems (Hall 1 Stand C14) and Nicarnica Aviation of Norway signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) at the Farnborough International Airshow yesterday to implement Nicarnica’s volcanic ash detection technology into Elbit’s enhanced vision system (EVS) cameras on commercial aircraft. The combination will help pilots avoid flying into contaminated areas while still maintaining safe operation in areas affected by volcanic eruptions.

Nicarnica’s Avoid (Airborne Volcanic Object Imaging Detector) technology detects volcanic ash in the atmosphere 100 km ahead of an aircraft. Real-time imagery is supplied to the cockpit from two fast-sampling, imaging infrared cameras that are tuned to detect hazardous volcanic ash particles in the atmosphere. Avoid software converts the image signal into ash concentrations, providing an indication of the levels. Implementing the technology into Elbit’s ClearVision EVS will provide additional system functionality without additional equipment, Elbit said.

Ove Bratsberg, Nicarnica CEO, said the partnership with Elbit “will take us closer to realizing the goal of an on-board, ash-detection system and offering it worldwide within the shortest possible time.”