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American Morning

FLIRs Aid U.S. Military Efforts

Aired November 08, 2001 - 10:45   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: It has provided some of the most memorable images we have seen from the Persian Gulf War, and also the conflict in Kosovo, and now the current war on terrorism in Afghanistan. It's a technology called FLIR.

Kyra Phillips again with us this morning to explain and describe more -- Kyra.

KYRA PHILLIPS, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Thanks, Bill.

Well, let's focus on a cutting-edge technology here that's vital in the war in Afghanistan. For most of us, this is what modern war looks like. It's an image captured by FLIR: Forward-Looking Infrared. It's a device mounted on an aircraft, usually on the front of a helicopter and on the side of the fuselage of a fixed-wing aircraft. It allows pilots to fly and fight in haze and total darkness.

Now, instead of looking at reflected light, the way the human eye operates, infrared detects the differences in heat reflecting from objects. And here's how it works: A tactical strike fighter aircraft like an F-18, an F-14 or, in this animation, you can see, an F-15E, it zooms over the battlefield in total darkness. Gunners on the ground can't see it, but the crew of the strike aircraft can see the target, thanks to the forward-looking infrared technology.

Now, the air crew designates the target -- in this case a tank -- with a laser, and a laser-guided bomb rides the beam all the way to the target.

Joining me now with some additional insight, retired Navy commander, and fellow Turner employee, Ed Brownlee.

Ed, let's talk about the FLIR. it doesn't see through clouds, correct?

CMDR. ED BROWNLEE (RET.), CNN MILITARY ANALYST: No, it doesn't. Clouds, moisture, droplets, humidity has a scattering and an absorption effect, so it will reduce the effectiveness and the range that you can see with the FLIR.

PHILLIPS: How exactly does the FLIR stabilize on its target?

BROWNLEE: Usually it will lock in on a heat source on the target, and then the automatic tracking feature will cause it to stay locked in on that part of the ship, the tank, or human -- a person if that's what you're trying to track and target.

PHILLIPS: And you were the captain of a Navy destroyer, so tell me how you and your crew used the FLIR.

BROWNLEE: Besides -- well, look at FLIR, the forward-looking infrared. There is the infrared -- it's a sensor. So we had infrared systems on the ship. We had it as part of Mark-34 gun system. And we used that for targeting and identifying different targets that we see, especially at night. It will allow us to identify or classify a target, whether it's a small fishing boat or a big merchant ship.

We also had the capability -- a handheld infrared device that we would use for firefighting purposes. If we were in a room that was filled with smoke, it would allow us to see that heat source of where that fire was at so we can concentrate our firefighting efforts.

And it also -- you know, there's one other. We had a round and (UNINTELLIGIBLE) that use it for fusing.

So there are different ways of using infrared onboard a ship.

PHILLIPS: And now the FLIR is being talked about in wintertime. And you were mentioning caves in Afghanistan. Perfect situation, right?

BROWNLEE: Yes. The FLIR -- again, going back to the infrared system -- its effectiveness depends on the contrast between temperatures. So at night or in the wintertime, you can more likely see a human being because of that difference in temperature between the ambient temperature and the temperature of the body. So in a cave in the wintertime, if someone is using any type of heat source to keep warm, or just a human body, and it's 30 -- you know, 20 degrees Fahrenheit, you'll be able to see that contrast, so the infrared will be able to pick up a person in the wintertime or at night.

PHILLIPS: Back to the FLIR. We were talking about, I guess, the contrast. There are situations where the FLIR could not stabilize on the right target, correct?

BROWNLEE: There are times, especially if there's a high ambient temperature or a lot of background noise -- and when I say background noise, I talk about temperature that is close to the temperature of the target you're trying to detect -- then a FLIR may have trouble targeting and stabilizing on that target.

PHILLIPS: Commander Ed Brownlee, thanks so much for the insight this morning.

BROWNLEE: You're welcome, Kyra.

PHILLIPS: All right. And we want to let you know, too, that if you want to find out more on the U.S. military technology and the campaign in Afghanistan, you can visit CNN.com., of course. You can view the latest strikes maps, read military briefings and check out our interactive graphics. The AOL keyword is "CNN."

Bill, back to you.

HEMMER: All right, Kyra, thank you much.

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