Spidertracks

Spidertracks is a privately held New Zealand based company specialising in the development of hardware and software for the general aviation industry. The company specialises in flight tracking, aviation communication, and flight data acquisition.[1]

Spider Tracks Limited
Spidertracks
TypePrivately held company
IndustryAviation
Founded2007
FounderJames McCarthy
HeadquartersAuckland, New Zealand
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Dave Blackwell, CEO
Websitewww.spidertracks.com

History

Spidertracks was founded by James McCarthy in 2007 in the small rural town of Pohangina, just outside Palmerston North, New Zealand.[2] Following the death of high-profile businessman Michael Erceg in a helicopter crash in 2005, Erceg's downed aircraft was not located for two-weeks due to the failure of an Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT).[3]

McCarthy and some associates saw the opportunity to develop a lightweight, portable, 'real-time' GPS tracking device for the aviation industry.[4]

The team developed a device known as a 'Spider' – a small device that plugs into an aircraft's auxiliary power outlet and is mounted in the cockpit.[5]

Information such the aircraft's location, altitude, speed, and direction were transmitted via the Iridium satellite network every two minutes to the Spidertracks software platform. The founders claimed this offered a much more reliable way to locate an aircraft in an emergency situation.[4][5]

Spider Tracks Limited was registered with the New Zealand Companies Office on 20 February 2007.[6]

Locations

Spidertracks' head office is in Auckland, New Zealand, with a secondary office in Parker, Colorado. The company also claims to employ staff across the world.[7]

References
  1. Huber, Mark. "Spidertracks Adds AHRS Data". Aviation International News. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  2. "Aircraft tracking company sees itself as world leader". RNZ. 11 May 2010. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  3. "NZ liquor baron fatally flew chopper into cloud – report". NZ Herald. 19 March 2010. ISSN 1170-0777. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  4. "Employers and Manufacturers Association (EMA) Northern – Spidertracks". www.ema.co.nz. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  5. Glasgow, Michael J.; Niehus, Gregory A. (October 2012). "Improving General Aviation safety using low-cost Iridium devices". 2012 IEEE/AIAA 31st Digital Avionics Systems Conference (DASC): 4C5–1–4C5-11. doi:10.1109/DASC.2012.6382341. ISBN 978-1-4673-1700-9. S2CID 16370.
  6. "View All Details". app.companiesoffice.govt.nz. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  7. "About Us | Spidertracks". www.spidertracks.com. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
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