Reliable robotics shows an unrelated flight from a large freight plane. (Business Wire via AP)
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Reliable Robotics Corp. piloted a small loading plane on loan from Fedex Corp. Without a human on board, a stage to the autonomous flight startup winning the regulatory approval of its pilot remote control system.
In coordination with the Federal Aviation AdministrationThe 12 -minute flight from the Grand Caravan Cessna 208B on November 21 took off and landed at the municipal airport in Hollister in Northern California. A distant pilot has managed all radio calls and watched the plane during the flight about 80 kilometers from the company’s command center in Mountain View, California. It was the second automated robotics flight, after stolen a much smaller Cessna 172 in 2019.
“We have demonstrated an automated taxi, takeoff and automated landing, all without pilot on board,” said Robert RoseCo-founder and CEO of Robotics Reliable in an interview. “It was like a normal operation with the FAA.”
The flight is part of the Startup’s efforts to obtain total FAA approval. The agency accepted the reliable robotics plan to certify technology this summer after a four -year effort, said Rose, which plans to obtain the FAA regulatory approval in the two years. Since 2021, the company has worked under contracts with the Air Force, which is interested in the logistics system and supply of planes, said Rose.
The system will be used by distant pilots who will supervise a single plane both rather than a pilot managing several autonomous flights, he said.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2O4HGNCMD4
The remote pilot is responsible for the safe farm of the plane and looks at things such as air speed, altitude and predicted flight trajectory. The pilot can maneuver the plane if necessary to avoid planes or unexpected objects, but does not control the plane during the flight. During the November test, the remote pilot had nothing to make in addition to radio calls, said Rose.
By having distant pilots, air freight companies, such as Fedex or UPS Inc.Could stimulate efficiency because a pilot could make a flight early in the morning on the East Coast, then change to guide an airplane on the west coast, he said. By not making pilots physically linked to the plane, planes can be repositioned more easily to match the strongest demand, he said.
Fedex has not been committed to using technology, but said that he was looking for innovations that could help improve the service to remote locations.
“We are impatient to test and learn throughout this collaboration with reliable robotics,” said the company in a statement sent by e-mail.
As with autonomous vehicles, the system must prove that it is as sure or safer as human operators before its adoption. Thefts will start in freight and will eventually be adopted by airlines, helping to facilitate problems planning and reduce the shortage of pilots. Instead of eliminating jobs, technology will create more flying demand by reducing costs, Rose said.
“The near future, I believe, will have distant pilots in the control centers managing a plane at a time,” he said. “There are huge savings in there.”
Reliable robotics now manage a small freight airline at New Mexico with five Cessna controlled caravans which operate for Fedex transport packages. The goal is to understand the needs of the industry and to function as an “incubator for this technology”. But there are still folds to develop.
“Our system does not start automated engine, so someone has to be on the plane to start the engine,” he said. “We are working on this.”
Fedex Corp. ranks n ° 3 on the Topics Top 50 Transport List of the largest world freight companies And N ° 2 on TT100 list for rental.