Geneva Aerospace,
Carrollton TX: Geneva Aerospace successfully completed six consecutive auto landings of a Dakota UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) at the United States Army Yuma Proving Grounds in Yuma, Arizona. This flight test was the next phase under Geneva's current contract with the Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) and the United States Air Force Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Battlelab (UAVB).
The test served as the precursor to flying the Berkut UAV which will utilize Geneva's proven integrated avionics technologies, as well as the auto landing capability. The Berkut test flight is tentatively scheduled for early 2006.
Geneva personnel, in conjunction with NAVAIR, conducted the test using a Dakota UAV that weighs approximately 200 pounds and has a wingspan of 16 feet. The vehicle was outfitted with Geneva's proven command, control and communication (C3) solutions which consists of missionTEK(TM) ground control station, flightTEK(R) flight control computer, and linkTEK(TM) data link computer. Geneva's C3 product suite coupled with the auto land capability delivers affordable and reliable solutions for autonomous flights.
“The auto landing technology that we have developed can bring precision landing capability to a wide variety of UAVs, but at an order of magnitude less than existing systems,” said Dave Lleras, program manager for Geneva. “The next stage of our program will involve demonstrating this technology on a 2000 pound class vehicle.” While the demonstrations are land-based, future objectives will also include shipboard landing.
