The 309th Aerospace Maintenance and Regeneration Group is adopting a system that combines Wi-Fi-based active RFID tags and GPS to help it track equipment and tools at its 110-million-square-foot compound at the Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Arizona. The system, slated to become operational in January 2009, employs a solution designed to enable users to pinpoint an asset's location throughout the vast compound, even in remote locations where Wi-Fi access points are sparse.
Sometimes known as the "boneyard," the Air Force's giant aircraft storage and maintenance area includes more than 4,400 aircraft and employs 550 workers--almost all of who are civilians. A plane arriving at the outdoor facility can be directed in several ways: either to be moved into storage, be routed to an area where it will undergo maintenance and repair work before being returned to service for the U.S. military, or be refurbished and sold to another source, such as a friendly foreign government.
Source: RFID Journal