Airfield safety inspections require broad coverage, rapid detection, and consistent judgment across very large operating areas. Foreign object debris on runways can cause serious aircraft damage, yet detecting small objects across an airfield can be difficult when inspections depend only on human visual checks.
At ILA Berlin 2026, Illuminex AI presented practical AI solutions designed to complement human inspections and improve airfield maintenance and safety. The company introduced a range of inspection-related products for airports, including foreign object debris detection, runway surface analysis, runway incursion alerts, and airfield digital twin solutions.
The most mature product introduced was an FOD detection system. It detects foreign objects and debris on the runway and alerts the driver in real time, enabling faster response during airfield inspections. The company also described AI-based analysis of airfield surface quality, including crack and defect monitoring over time, to support more proactive runway maintenance.
Illuminex AI also presented a runway incursion alert system that warns inspectors before entering a runway without appropriate precautions, as well as a digital twin solution that can be used for training new airfield drivers. The company positioned AI as a way to democratize advanced airfield technology, making it accessible not only to major airports but also to smaller general aviation airports.
Illuminex AI presented AI-based airfield inspection and maintenance solutions, including FOD detection, runway surface analysis, runway incursion alerts, and airfield digital twin technology.
The system detects foreign object debris on the runway and alerts the driver in real time, helping inspection teams respond quickly to safety risks.
Yes. The company explained that AI can help make advanced airfield technologies accessible not only to major airports but also to smaller general aviation airports with limited traffic.
I’m Brian Freed, the CEO of Illuminex AI.We are building practical solutions that leverage AI to enhance the maintenance and safety of airfields by using AI to augment human inspections.One of the challenges of the inspections, if you think about it, are things like foreign object and debris,so small pieces of debris that can be ingested by a plane, cause major damage, and are a significant safety hazard.But an airfield could be the equivalent of 800 soccer fields and you’re looking for a golf ball sized object while traveling 30 miles an hour.And so AI can really help to address that issue.We have a range of different products that target different inspections. Our most mature product is the font detector.It detects foreign objects or debris on the runway and alerts drivers in real time so that they can quickly resolve it.We have another product that analyzes the quality of the airfield surface that makes sure that there are no large cracksand analyzes existing cracks and defects over time to make sure that things will aren’t broken too quickly. This allows airports to more proactively maintain their surface, which is their most valuable asset. We have a runway incursion warning system that will warn inspectors from entering runways without taking the proper precautions.And we have a digital twin solution that can be used to train new drivers to navigate your family’s car.So I think the the message I would like to say for the future is, one of the challenges with technology for the airfield isit’s really only been the largest airports that could participate in the past.One of the things that AI is doing, it’s democratizing technology.We have technology deployed at some of the largest airports down to GA airports where there’s only two or three aircraft movements a day.And so we see AI as something that can really democratize technology across the breadth of the airport world.You can find us on LinkedIn, we’re called Illuminex AI.Or you can find us at https://www.illuminex.ai/fod-ai



















