US Air Force OKs Savi RFID Tracking Devices On All Aircraft

The U.S. Air Force (USAF) has approved usage of Savi Technology’s RFID asset tracking and security devices aboard all sizes and classifications of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft – government, commercial, passenger or cargo that transport supplies for the U.S. Department of Defense. Certification of Savi’s Radio Frequency Identification devices followed extensive tests determining that they did not interfere with onboard avionics, such as radios, navigation or flight instruments. RFID tags from Savi Technology, a Lockheed Martin company, have been used successfully for years aboard U.S. military aircraft under other certification programs, but USAF’s certification now broadens their usage aboard all kinds and sizes of aircraft throughout all the Services. Eight of Savi’s RFID tags, which can be affixed to supplies, Unit Load Devices, containers, pallets and other transport conveyances, were approved under MIL-STD-46IF and MIL-STD-464A, which addresses electromagnetic interference issues. Previously, Savi Technology became the first company to receive Supplemental Type certification from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration for usage of one of its RFID tags on a commercial aircraft. “U.S. Air Force certification of our broad portfolio of RFID tags extends the ability of the DoD to further automate monitoring of its supplies end-to-end across all modes of transportation,” said David Stephens, chief executive officer of Savi Technology. “This clearance provides further validation that Savi’s RFID devices can be safely used aboard government or commercial aircraft to improve the efficiency, security and condition of in-transit supplies.” 18000-7 compliant RFID devices developed by Savi Technology are safe aboard aircraft because they transmit only microwatts of power intermittently in short data packets. The tags also can be de-activated, or “turned off”, but the USAF evaluations, which were done in real-world taxi and flight scenarios as well as in laboratories, determined that they were safe aboard aircraft even when activated continuously. The U.S. DoD and allied international defense forces in Europe and Pacific Asia track more than 35,000 shipments daily tagged with Savi’s RFID devices by air, rail, ship and truck across more than 4,000 locations and 50 countries. Savi Technology helped build the DoD’s In-Transit Visibility network, the world’s largest RFID cargo tracking system. Savi’s SmartChain® software suite, when integrated with DASH-7 technologies (ISO 18000-7-based devices), can optimize the performance and efficiency of assets moving throughout local and global supply chains.