Boeing uses Dow-Key microwave switches in 787 Dreamliner

Chicago-based Boeing Co. has used microwave RF switches from Dow-Key of Ventura, Calif., within its collision avoidance and landing systems for roughly two decades. Now Boeing has contracted Dow-Key to provide switches for the mid-size 787 Dreamliner slated to be released for service in 2008.

The 787’s Traffic Collision Avoidance System (TCAS-II) is equipped with Dow-Key’s RF switching technology, as is the case with all of Boeing’s commercial fleet of aircraft.

Boeing’s TCAS-II, mandated by the Federal Aviation Administration, provides air-traffic controllers with an aircraft’s identification and altitude, while terminal radar conveys relative position and distance information. When the system detects a potential in-flight collision with another aircraft, it advises the pilot to pull up, dive, or turn right or left.

Boeing’s TCAS-II uses two antennas-one on the top of the fuselage and one below-connected to one of two Mode S transponders via Dow-Key 402-167 switches. For more information, visit www.dow-key.com.