ORLANDO, Fla. — Either you’ve seen the new “Top Gun: Maverick” movie by now or your friends are telling you about it.
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While it may be just a film, it’s based on real-life technology, some of which is produced in Orlando.
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Channel 9 got an inside look at what allows fighter jet pilots to perform missions and get home safely.
Photos: Advanced infrared sensor used in fighter jets is built in Orlando
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It’s called IRST21 and it takes two years to produce a unit from Lockheed Martin in Orlando and Ocala.
This highly advanced infrared sensor identifies the heat signature from friction as air passes over very distant aircraft.
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These sensors can be mounted almost anywhere, like on the underside of a fighter jet, but for a pilot to get practice and training actually using this technology, they do a cockpit simulator.
Orlando has long been the home of simulation and training for the military services.
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Pilots use simulators frequently to learn to train for missions and learn new technology.
The sensor is also responsible for 160 jobs at Lockheed Martin.
See more in the video above.
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