IN Brief:
- Reliable Robotics has completed an FAA contract covering detect-and-avoid data collection flights around airport environments.
- The test work evaluated behaviour across en route and terminal operations using the company’s DAA system and ACAS X.
- Data from the campaign has been shared into the standards process for advanced UAS detect-and-avoid systems.
Reliable Robotics has completed an FAA contract to carry out detect-and-avoid data collection flights in and around airport environments, closing a test programme aimed at advancing certification standards for large uncrewed aircraft systems. The campaign was carried out under the Federal Aviation Administration’s Broad Agency Announcement programme.
The company said the work evaluated the boundary between en route and terminal environments and assessed how its detect-and-avoid system, together with ACAS X, generated alerts and manoeuvring guidance for remote pilots operating around airports. Reliable said the resulting operational data has been provided to support FAA work on detect-and-avoid standards now in development.
Testing included hardware-in-the-loop work and scripted encounter flights around the terminal area at Hollister Municipal Airport in California. Reliable said the programme was carried out with Virginia Tech’s Mid-Atlantic Aviation Partnership and with support from Sagetech, Collins, and uAvionix. The company added that data from the campaign has been shared with RTCA Special Committee 228 and Special Committee 147 as the standards work on advanced detect-and-avoid systems continues.
