b'48 MIA SECURITYMiami Intl Serves as TSA Test Site for Technologies to Help Detect DronesBY RONNIE WENDTMiami Intl Airport (MIA) ranks amongspreadsheet to show frequency and severity, it FACTS&FIGURESthe busiest airports in the world, withis a threat we know is out there.Project: TSA Drone Detection Technologiesabout 43,000 takeoffs and landings aAirport operators throughout the world Program year. Naturally, the bustling airport makes safety ashare MIAs concerns. Many, in fact, deal Location:Miami Intl Airporttop priority. But unmanned aircraft systems (UAS)with unwanted drone traffic on a daily basis. using drones present a growing safety risk.Airports see that UAS have potentially dire Purpose: Test & evaluate equipment designed to detect, track & identify drones in commercialUntil recently, it had also been a risk thatconsequences, but no one knows what to do airspacewas difficult to quantify. In terms of localabout it, Hatfield laments.Program Sponsor/Administrator: TSA experience, the presenceWith MIAs assistance, that could soon Cost to Airport:$0of drones is mostlychange. Since August 2021, TSA has been Timeline: Ongoing since Aug. 2021anecdotal, says Markusing the Florida airport as a real-world test Hatfield, assistant aviationsite for technologies designed to prevent Strategy: Evaluate systems from top-tierdirector and chief security manufacturersdisruptions and disasters posed by drones officer in charge of publicoperating in commercial airspaces. Technologies Being Tested: Radar;safety and security at thermal imaging; electro optical; radioMIA. Its pilots reportingMARK HATFIELD The program aims to help airports defend frequency; acoustic to the tower, the towerthemselves through detection, identification Key Benefit: Feedback & data frommaking observations, and, occasionally,and eventually mitigation, Hatfield explains.tests conducted at an active airport willits law enforcement on the ground makingAt MIA, he saw eye-popping results in the help manufacturers refine their products & technologies observations. While we cannot put it on avery first month of the program. The number January | February 2023AirportImprovement.com'