PARIS: Leading European aerospace companies began working together on an airline security project in 2004 and are making progress with systems to help produce the first hijack-proof plane.

The SAFEE project, which stands for Security of Aircraft in the Future European Environment, aims to create a series of technological innovations to prevent “a repeat of Sept 11”, says project coordinator Daniel Gaultier.

These include microphones and cameras to monitor passengers in the cabin, digital fingerprints and iris scans for access to the cockpit, and an avoidance system to prevent planes crashing into buildings.

All are designed to make hijacking an airliner in mid-flight virtually impossible.

Not on the list, however, is the oft-mentioned idea of piloting planes from the ground by remote control. Gaultier describes this as “futurism”, noting that it presents “huge difficulties in regulation and in securing the signal”.—AFP