In an effort to thwart attacks on slow-moving aircraft by shoulder-fired and vehicle missiles, maintenance personnel at Robins Air Force Base, Ga., have teamed with Northrop Grumman Corp. to build a new weapons system. The Large Aircraft Infrared Countermeasures system or LAIRCM, works by detecting head-seeking missiles and then sending signals that direct their flight paths away from threatened aircraft. LAIRCM work had previously been done in Fort Walton Beach, Fla. The decision to move the project to Robins reflects the Air Force’s belief that the responsibility LAIRCM production and maintenance should not rest solely in the hands of a private contractor.
