Israel Aerospace Industries,
BEN GURION INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT, Israel: The MC4 System (MLM Command and Control Communication Center) has been activated in the city of Ashkelon's Urban Situation Room since the beginning of operation “Cast Lead” in Gaza. The MC4 is produced by the MLM Division of the Systems, Missiles and Space Group of Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI).
The MC4 uses data flow obtained from sensors, cameras and on-the-ground personnel. It is based on a Global Positioning System (GPS), to assist rescue forces and local authorities both during emergency situations and on a day-to-day basis.
Benny Vaknin, the mayor of Ashkelon, gave an update from the situation room to Eli Yishay, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Industry, Commerce and Employment, Yitzhak Cohen, Minister of Religious Affairs and Shraga Brosh, President of the Manufacturers’ Association, during their visit to Ashkelon on Monday, December 29th: “The Situation Room is in use thanks to IAI's system. This is an excellent and accurate system that allows us to immediately dispatch forces to areas targeted by missiles. The situation room has been working very well in real-time during the last few days as missiles hit Ashkelon.”
Uri Sinai, General Manager of IAI's MLM Division said: “The system was installed in Ashkelon and was checked last week during the Home Front Command's successful drill. It is operational helps municipal personnel find and deal all issues that require their intervention. The Ashkelon municipality teams currently in charge of operating the system were briefed by IAI’s MLM.
The system is easy to operate and displays a virtual picture of the entire city, including such basic information such as location of schools, kindergartens, shopping centers and others.”
In his visit in Ashkelon's situation room said Sinai: “From the moment we are aware of a missile hitting the city, Ashkelon personnel know which relevant teams to send to the area – whether police, engineers, ambulance services, social workers, or others, to ensure that the city can continue to function quickly and smoothly in response to an emergency situation.”
Yossi Greenfeld of Ashkelon's security office said: “The City of Ashkelon is assisted by computerized .information gathering and processing so that decisions can be made quickly and accurately. The city is split into sections on the map so that during any given situation, everyone involved has the same picture and can refer to the same details. This allows for rapid information transmission, processing, and better execution.”
In the past few weeks, IAI’s MLM Division has been awarded contracts worth $48 million to supply a command and control system to the Israel Ministry of Defense and to supply an advanced Joint Training Capability System to a foreign customer.
