GA-ASI Part of Aviation Week Laureate Award Winning Team

by | Mar 18, 2019

SAN DIEGO  “ Last night at the Aviation Week Network's 62nd Annual Laureate Awards in Washington, DC, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) and its teammates NASA, the FAA and Honeywell were honored for best achievement of 2018 in the category of Commercial Aviation-Unmanned Systems. The team was recognized for conducting the first FAA-approved, no chase plane required, flight of a large Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) in controlled airspace using a Detect and Avoid (DAA) system developed by GA-ASI to meet the FAA's 14 CFR 91.113(b) requirement to see and avoid other aircraft.

We're thrilled to be part of this important aviation achievement, said David R. Alexander, president, GA-ASI. This is another step toward our goal of producing UAS that can be certified to fly in non-segregated airspace. Our DAA system is more capable than the collision avoidance systems required on today's commercial manned aircraft, and we believe it far exceeds the average pilot's ability to ˜see and avoid.' The predictive capabilities of our system creates a safe environment for manned and unmanned aircraft to fly together in the NAS [National Airspace System].

On June 12, 2018, NASA flew its MQ-9 Ikhana UAS equipped with the DAA system through the NAS after taking off from Southern California. The DAA system installed on Ikhana, a NASA-owned Predator® B/MQ-9 UAS, combined automatic collision avoidance with the ability for the pilot to remain ˜well clear' of other airspace users. Its subsystems include a GA-ASI-developed airborne radar, TCAS II and DAA tracking capability from Honeywell, Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) IN/OUT, and a Conflict Prediction and Display System.

GA-ASI has been working with the FAA, NASA's Armstrong Flight Research Center, Honeywell, and other industry partners since 2013 to develop a standardized airborne DAA system that has worked flawlessly through several test flights. Flight tests on NASA’s Ikhana served as the basis for verification and validation of RTCA DO-365 and DO-366, technical standards for DAA, which were published by the RTCA in May 2017.

 

About GA-ASI

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), an affiliate of General Atomics, is the leading designer and manufacturer of proven, reliable Remotely Piloted Aircraft (RPA) systems, radars, and electro-optic and related mission systems, including the Predator® RPA series and the Lynx® Multi-mode Radar. With more than five million flight hours, GA-ASI provides long-endurance, mission-capable aircraft with integrated sensor and data link systems required to deliver persistent flight that enables situational awareness and rapid strike. The company also produces a variety of ground control stations and sensor control/image analysis software, offers pilot training and support services, and develops meta-material antennas. For more information, visit www.ga-asi.com.

 

Predator, and Lynx are registered trademarks of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc.

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