GPS World

Tag: Super Bowl

  • FAA Warns Super Bowl Fans: Leave Drone at Home

    The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) declared today that Super Bowl XLIX will be a “No Drone Zone.”

    “Many familiar sounds are associated with the Super Bowl: Cheering fans. Referee whistles. The spectacular halftime show. Booming fireworks,” the FAA wrote. “But one sound you shouldn’t hear is the whirring of an unmanned aircraft overhead. The Super Bowl is strictly a ‘No Drone Zone’.” The restriction applies to University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona, during the game.

    The FAA bars unauthorized aircraft — including drones — from flying over or near NFL regular- and post-season football games. The same restriction applies to NCAA college games in stadiums seating 30,000 or more fans, Major League Baseball games and many NASCAR events. Other unauthorized aircraft include airplanes, hang gliders, hot air balloons, and model rockets.

    The FAA Notice to Airmen makes it crystal clear that anyone violating the rules may be “intercepted, detained and interviewed” by law enforcement or security personnel. Besides possibly landing a violator in jail, flying an unmanned aircraft over a crowded stadium could result in an FAA civil penalty for “careless and reckless” operation of an aircraft.

    The agency also produced a YouTube video with the same message.

  • Exelis GPS Threat Detection Helped Safeguard Super Bowl XLVIII

    Signal Sentry 1000, an Exelis product that detects and locates GPS interference sources in 3D by using longitude, latitude and altitude, was deployed during Super Bowl XLVIII at the MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

    During the Super Bowl, GPS devices were used extensively to track and monitor the location of team members and officials. GPS was also used to ensure that event organizers and security knew the exact location of team vehicles en route to the stadium. If a vehicle were to break down delaying the arrival of a team or game staff to the event, logistics and scheduling could have been adjusted accordingly.

    “Signal Sentry 1000 helped our law enforcement officials keep thousands of fans in attendance safe during one of the most exciting nights for millions of Americans,” said Mark Pisani, vice president and general manager of positioning, navigation and timing for Exelis Geospatial Systems. “Protecting critical GPS infrastructure is extremely important for public safety.”

    Signal Sentry 1000 was designed to collect actionable intelligence for law enforcement and to protect GPS signal-dependent critical infrastructures. At the Super Bowl, Exelis deployed eight Signal Sentry sensors positioned in an array pattern to detect and locate the jamming source. Threats are detected through a network of sensors, which is part of a centralized server executing Exelis-developed proprietary location algorithms.

    In addition to national special security events like the Super Bowl, sensors can also be used around different types of critical infrastructure, such as utilities and government facilities, to automatically sense and locate any intentional or unintentional source of GPS jamming. Once a threat is detected, users receive specific information regarding the location of the threat in order to stop or mitigate the interference.