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Allow me to introduce myself as the recently appointed President of Vision Systems International (VSI). It is an honor to take the helm of a company with a well earned reputation for innovation and technical development, a world-class engineering team, and the corporate-parent backing of Rockwell Collins and Elbit Systems of America. My mission is to not only to sustain, but to enhance the position of VSI as the world’s leading provider of advanced, combat-proven helmet mounted display systems for fixed-wing tactical aircraft.
VSI and I go back a long time. I began working on HMD system in 1986 with Kaiser Electronics (now part of VSI), and spent 26 years as an Avionics Integrator and Manager at McDonnell Douglas / Boeing, of which 16 years were spent managing various elements of the Joint Helmet Mounted Cueing System Program. I also served 13 years as a U.S. Air Force fighter pilot, and another 17 years in the U.S. Navy Reserve, assigned to the Naval Air Systems Command. So I’m quite familiar with VSI and HMDS technologies, from the perspective of both user and developer.
If you’re a VSI employee, business partner or just someone who appreciates the cutting-edge technology that we’ve put into the helmet mounted display system for the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, comments made recently by Lockheed Martin F-35 Test Pilots about our F-35 HMDS are a must to hear. They reinforce what VSI has been promising from the start: that our binocular wide Field-of-View, integrated 24/7 day-night vision, and highly precise head tracking capabilities enable the pilot to accurately cue onboard weapon systems against air-to-air and air-ground targets with minimal maneuvering of the aircraft. A couple of examples:
“…looking through the aircraft and seeing the ground, seeing the target below and being able to place another sensor on it is just unheard of.”
“This helmet is amazing. The things that it allows us to do are amazing, and what people have to realize is that this is an integrated system with a heads-up display that we can move around anyway we go, anyway we look.”
Of course the pilot means a virtual heads-up display because VSI’s F-35 HMDS technology enables a “first look, first shot” high off the boresight weapons engagement advantage without the need for a Heads-Up Display or night vision goggles. In short, our technology provides aviation warfighters with unprecedented situational awareness and tactical capability.
Have a question or a comment you would like to share about our F-35 HMDs, or any of our other HMD systems? I want to hear it.
I hope you visit this site often for more updates, innovations and advanced developments from VSI.
Phil King
