NASA's Ikhana is being used to test a system that
will allow uncrewed aircraft to fly routine operations within the
National Airspace System.
Credits: NASA
NASA, working with government and industry partners, is testing a
system that would make it possible for unmanned aircraft to fly routine
operations in United States airspace.
Through the agency’s Unmanned Aircraft Systems Integration in the
National Airspace System (UAS-NAS) project, NASA, General Atomics
Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) and Honeywell International, Inc.,
are flying a series of tests which began on June 17 and will run through
July at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in California.
“We are excited to continue our partnership with GA-ASI and Honeywell
to collect flight test data that will aid in the development of
standards necessary to safely integrate these aircraft into the National
Airspace System,” said Laurie Grindle, UAS-NAS project manager at
Armstrong.
This is the third series of tests that builds upon the success of
similar experiments conducted late last year that demonstrated a
proof-of-concept sense-and-avoid system. The tests engage the core air
traffic infrastructure and supporting software components through a live
and virtual environment to demonstrate how a remotely piloted aircraft
interacts with air traffic controllers and other air traffic.
“This is the first time that we are flight testing all of the
technology developments from the project at the same time,” Grindle
said.
This series of tests is made up of two phases. The first is focused
on validation of sensor, trajectory and other simulation models using
live data. Some of the tests will be flown with an Ikhana aircraft,
based at Armstrong, that has been equipped with an updated
sense-and-avoid system, as well as other advanced software from
Honeywell.
Other tests will involve an S-3B plane from NASA’s Glenn Research
Center in Cleveland, serving as a high-speed piloted surrogate aircraft.
Both tests will use other aircraft following scripted flight paths to
intrude on the flight path the remotely-piloted craft is flying,
prompting it to either issue an alert or maneuver out of the other
aircraft’s path. These flights will also conduct the first full test of
the traffic alert and collision avoidance system (TCAS II) on a remotely
piloted aircraft.
During the June 17 test, which lasted a little more than five hours,
the team accomplished 14 encounters using the Ikhana aircraft and a
Honeywell-owned Beech C90 King Air acting as the intruder. A second test
was flown the following day, with a total of 23 encounters. The project
team plans to fly more than 200 encounters throughout the first phase
of the test series.
“Our researchers and project engineers will be gathering a
substantial amount of data to validate their pilot maneuver guidance and
alerting logic that has previously been evaluated in simulations,” said
Heather Maliska, Armstrong’s UAS-NAS deputy project manager.
The second phase of the third test series will begin in August and
will include a T-34 plane equipped with a proof-of-concept control and
non-payload communications system. It will evaluate how well the systems
work together so that the aircraft pilots itself, interacts with air
traffic controllers and remains well clear of other aircraft while
executing its operational mission. The aircraft, which will have an
onboard safety pilot, will fly an operationally representative mission
in a virtual airspace sector complete with air traffic control and live
and virtual traffic.
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For more information on the UAS-NAS project, visit:
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Last Updated: July 5, 2015
Editor: Sarah Ramsey
