Reliable Robotics flies cargo aircraft with no crew
07 / 12 / 2023
Reliable Robotics demonstrates uncrewed flight of a Cessna 208B cargo aircraft. Photo: Business Wire
Reliable Robotics has carried out the successful flight of a Cessna 208B Caravan with no crew on board, a milestone in its work to bring safety-enhancing technologies to market in the US.
The Reliable autonomous flight system enables the aircraft to be remotely operated by a pilot on the ground and aims to improve safety by fully automating the aircraft through all phases of operation including taxi, takeoff and landing.
The system will prevent controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) and loss of control in flight (LOC-I), which account for the majority of fatal aviation accidents, said Reliable Robotics.
For this flight, carried out last month, a remote pilot supervised the uncrewed Textron Aviation-manufactured aircraft from Reliable’s control centre 50 miles away.
Reliable Robotics has been collaborating with Textron Aviation on its autonomous flight work.
“Textron Aviation is committed to delivering continuous aviation improvements and our relationship with Reliable Robotics advances this work,” said Chris Hearne, senior vice president of engineering and programmes, Textron Aviation. “Reliable’s successful flight of an uncrewed Cessna 208 Caravan represents a milestone for the industry in bringing new technology to aviation.”
With a useful load of over 3,000 pounds, and a take-off performance to operate from shorter runways, the Caravan is able to deliver time-sensitive shipments to locations that would otherwise not have next-day or same-day service. Remote piloting will allow more areas to benefit from this service.
In addition to Textron Aviation, Reliable has been working with ASL Aviation Holdings, a global aviation services company with airlines based in Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia, since 2022 to explore bringing advanced aircraft automation into its operations.
ASL operates a fleet of over 160 aircraft and provides cargo services for express parcel integrators and e-commerce platforms. Reliable Robotics is an original member of ASL’s CargoVision forum of companies involved in pioneering new aviation and propulsion technologies.
Reliable and the US Air Force are also working to leverage the progress on remote piloting for the Cessna Caravan to jointly examine how this commercially derived technology can be applied to large multi-engine aircraft for cargo logistics, aerial refuelling and other missions. Reliable has been working under a series of contracts with the Air Force since 2021.
The FAA formally accepted the certification plan for Reliable’s autonomous flight system in June.
Reliable Robotics inches closer to autonomous airborne reality
