Reliable Robotics, a California-based manufacturer of aircraft automation systems, has successfully flown a Cessna 208B Caravan with no one on board. The uncrewed aircraft was instead supervised during its fully autonomous flight by a remote pilot stationed in a company control center 50 miles away.
The Caravan, and other small cargo aircraft like it, are often used by operators to connect communities with air freight services out of airports with short runways that cannot handle larger aircraft. It offers a useful load of around 3,000 pounds (1,361 kg) in a boxy airframe that is well suited for package delivery operations. Remote piloting could allow one operator to monitor multiple delivery flights at once from a central location, reducing the need for pilots in the aircraft and reducing the cost of operations.
Reliable says its system can be used on other platforms aside from the Caravan and offers multiple layers of redundancy to achieve the level of reliability necessary for uncrewed flight in civil airspace. The system can prevent controlled flight into terrain (CFIT) and loss of control in flight (LOC-I), both a major cause of fatal aviation accidents.
The autonomous flight system is not approved for commercial service yet. However, Reliable says the FAA formally accepted its certification plan for the system in June of 2023. The manufacturer notes that the certification plan complies with existing regulations for both normal and transport category aircraft will not require any special conditions or exemptions from the FAA.
A lifelong aviation enthusiast, Douglas Royce is currently co-editor of four of Forecast International's Market Intelligence Services: Civil Aircraft Forecast, Military Aircraft Forecast, Rotorcraft Forecast, and Aviation Gas Turbine Forecast. As such, he plays a key role in many important projects that involve market sizing and forecasting for various segments of the world aerospace industry, as well as demand for related systems.
