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SUMMIT TO SPARK DIGITAL DEBATE
NEARLY 500 top decision-makers from business and public life are to
meet to shape the UK’s digital future and to examine how the way
people live and work will soon be changing.
The Broadband Britain Summit will be held at London’s QEII
Conference Centre on Monday, November 21. Key presentations will be
made by The Rt Hon Alun Michael MP, Minister of State for Industry
and the Regions, Sir Digby Jones, director general of the CBI and Ed
Richards, chief operating officer of Ofcom.
It will be hosted by InterForum, the not-for-profit, independent
organisation which promotes the acceleration of information and
communication technology to improve the business performance of the
UK. Said its chief executive, Phil Flaxton:- “This year the
summit will look at how achieving digital excellence can improve the
cohesion of UK society, the wealth of its economy and the quality of
life of its citizens.”
A key element of the summit will be a debate, chaired by Declan
Curry, business presenter for the BBC Breakfast programme, where an
invited audience of 470 decision-makers from forward-thinking
businesses, Government (central, regional, local), regional
development agencies, professional and trade associations and
Members of Parliament will discuss digital Britain.
The Government is committed to ensuring that the whole of society
can reap the benefits from advances in technology. Internet
connectivity is increasing in the UK with currently over 55.7% (13
million households) having access [August 2005], of which 55% are
broadband connections. Nationally, broadband is available to 97% of
homes and businesses [BT].
The Rt Hon. Alun Michael MP, Minister of State for Industry and the
Regions will detail the Government’s digital strategy, whereas Sir
Digby Jones, director general of the CBI, will explain how the UK’s
GDP and global competitiveness will increase with the implementation
of new technologies such as broadband.
Ed Richards, chief operating officer at Ofcom, will outline how
content will deliver extensive opportunities for a successful UK
knowledge economy, with Karen Price, chief executive of E-Skills UK,
introducing the education and skills agenda - embedding technology
into people's lives - how processes and people fit together.
Technology will change the way we work and live. Peter Thomson,
director of the Future Work Forum at Henley Management Centre will
look at the flexible working agenda, which will include the Work
Wise Week initiative taking place throughout the UK from the 19 to 27
February 2006.
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HOMELESSNESS STILL CAUSE FOR CONCERN
THE future of
commercial flight security was unveiled yesterday with the latest
BAE Systems air missile protection system. With over 218,000 flights
carrying over 23,800,000 passengers flying in and out of Manchester
a year, heading to destinations all over the world, there is a real
focus on the terrorist threat. The Counter-MANPADS JETEYE™ system
will offer a real defence against missile attack and could be fitted
to all major commercial airlines.
BAE Systems achieved a major milestone in the U.S. Department of
Homeland Security’s (DHS) Counter-MANPADS Program with the first
flight of its laser-based infrared countermeasures system on a
commercial airliner yesterday. The successful flight took place at
Fort Worth Alliance Airport in Texas.
The commercial airliner missile protection system, called JETEYE™,
is currently installed and being flight tested on a Boeing 767
aircraft. Initial testing will focus on achieving key system
performance objectives. The tests are part of the DHS evaluation of
the system’s performance against multiple missile threats. Testing
is scheduled to conclude by the end of this year with full U.S.
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification expected in
January.
During Phase I and Phase II of the DHS program, which began in
January 2004, BAE Systems developed the JETEYE system designed to
provide protection to commercial aircraft against the threat of
infrared guided missiles. The JETEYE system’s design is based on the
Advanced Threat Infrared Countermeasures (ATIRCM) system, developed
to protect military aircraft. A major focus of the 18-month program
included working closely with experts from the commercial airline
industry to ensure the system fits into the existing commercial
airline infrastructure.
BAE Systems is partnered with American Airlines Maintenance and
Engineering Services, which provided the Boeing 767 test aircraft as
well as engineering services critical to the development and
refinement of the JETEYE System’s installation, operations and
support concept.
“As a result of our partnership with the world’s largest airline, we
understand the challenges that the airlines face. Our installation
approach minimizes any impact on airline operations. We
absolutely could not have done this without the support we received
from the American Airlines maintenance and engineering team. They
were integral in helping us understand how best to adapt this
technology for seamless integration into the commercial airline
industry.” said Burt Keirstead, BAE Systems’ Counter-MANPADS
program director.
BAE Systems has delivered more than 14,000 infrared countermeasure
systems worldwide – more than all other companies combined. The
company was selected by DHS in 2004 to adapt proven military
technology to protect commercial aircraft against shoulder-fired
missiles. Infrared guided missiles have been used to shoot down
aircraft in the past, and the likelihood of their use as a terrorist
tool has increased since the attacks of September 11, 2001 and
subsequent MANPADS missile attacks on civil aircraft in Kenya in
2002 and Baghdad in 2003.
Following a brief assessment of the initial test results, Burt
Keirstead, program director of Counter-MANPADS for BAE Systems and
Richard French, manager of Fleet Operations for American Airlines
Engineering and Reliability will answer your questions.
The company’s Nashua, New Hampshire, USA facility designed and
produced the JETEYE™ system for the Counter-MANPADS program to
protect commercial aircraft against threats posed by infrared guided
missiles.
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