Photo: Zipline

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has authorized commercial UAV flights without visual observers in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, marking a significant milestone in U.S. aviation. This authorization has been granted to Zipline International and Wing Aviation, enabling them to conduct package delivery operations using UAVs while sharing airspace with conventional aircraft.

The UAVs remain separated from manned aircraft using unmanned aircraft system traffic management (UTM) technology, with rigorous FAA safety oversight. UTM services allow companies to share data and planned flight routes with other authorized airspace users, offering safe organization and management of UAV flights in shared airspace. All flights occur below 400 ft altitude and away from any crewed aircraft. The FAA expects initial flights using UTM services to begin in August 2024.

Typically, UAV operators must maintain visual line of sight with their aircraft. However, advancements in air traffic technology are paving the way for routine beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) flights. This authorization is the first time the FAA has recognized a third party to safely manage drone-to-drone interactions, a significant step towards integrating UAVs into the National Airspace System.

The FAA is working on the Normalizing UAV BVLOS Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM), which aims to enable UAV operators to expand operations while maintaining high safety standards. The NPRM is expected to be released this year, following strong Congressional support in the recent FAA reauthorization.

<p>The post FAA makes history, approves BVLOS deliveries in Dallas first appeared on GPS World.</p>

Photo: uAvionix

uAvionix has successfully installed and approved its surface situational awareness systems at two major U.S. airports: Indianapolis International Airport (IND) and Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS). Developed in collaboration with Capital Sciences, the systems have passed the Service Acceptance Test (SAT) and will be operational for Air Traffic Control (ATC) starting June 30, 2024.

“This milestone marks the first approvals under the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Surface Awareness Initiative (SAI), part of a broader effort to enhance runway safety across the nation,” said Christian Ramsey, chief commercial officer for uAvionix.

The uAvionix systems use the Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B) service called FlightLine, which offers controllers real-time, precise depictions of aircraft and vehicles on the airport surface. This technology seeks to improve situational awareness and reduce the risk of runway incursions.

The delivery of the FlightLine systems to IND and AUS was completed and accepted within a 90-day timeframe, thanks to close collaboration with the FAA, National Air Traffic Control Association (NATCA), Indianapolis Airport Authority and AUS.

Each airport also installed several of uAvionix’s VTU-20 ADS-B Vehicle Movement Area Transmitters (VMATs) on airport vehicles. The VTU-20 is an FAA-approved system that allows vehicles operating on runways and taxiways to be electronically seen by the tower and aircraft equipped with ADS-B In technologies, further reducing the risk of runway incursions.

Following the success of these implementations, uAvionix will continue working with the FAA to expand the capability to other airports nationwide.

Key benefits of the enhanced system include:

• Improved real-time tracking of aircraft and vehicles on the airfield.
• Increased safety and efficiency in all weather conditions.
• Decreased risk of runway incursions due to timely and accurate data.

<p>The post uAvionix delivers situational awareness systems to airports first appeared on GPS World.</p>

Photo: SandboxAQ

SandboxAQ has released AQNav, designed for navigation across air, land and sea when GPS signals are jammed or unavailable.  

As of June 2024, AQNav has logged more than 200 flight hours and 40 sorties across multiple regions of the world on four different aircraft types, ranging in size from single-engine planes to large military transport aircraft. 

AQNav is a geomagnetic navigation system that uses proprietary artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms, powerful quantum sensors and the Earth’s crustal magnetic field. The system seeks to provide an un-jammable, all-weather, terrain-agnostic, real-time navigation solution in situations where GPS signals are unavailable, denied or spoofed.  

The system uses extremely sensitive quantum magnetometers to acquire data from Earth’s crustal magnetic field, which exhibits geographically unique patterns – similar to a human fingerprint. AQNav uses AI algorithms to compare this data against known magnetic maps, allowing the system to quickly and accurately find its position. Due to the high sensitivity of quantum sensors, AI algorithms are applied to improve the signal-to-noise ratio, removing any mechanical, electrical or other interference that would impact the system’s ability to acquire its location. 

It is available globally and can be used in air, land and sea applications. The system does not rely on visual ground features or satellite transmissions to function and is not affected by weather conditions.  

AQNav operates at room temperature, requires no shielding and has a small form factor that can be integrated into a wide variety of platforms, from multi-engine airliners to UAVs. Its passive technology emits no electronic signals, which reduces the aircraft’s detectability. 

AQNav seeks to increase useful navigation for aircraft navigating within the frameworks of regulatory bodies such as the International Civil Aviation Organization and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). SandboxAQ and its partners are continuing to explore a broad range of use cases for both commercial and defense applications. 

<p>The post SandboxAQ unveils AI and quantum-powered navigation system first appeared on GPS World.</p>

Photo: American Aerospace Technologies (AATI)

American Aerospace, an Iridium partner, has received a waiver from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to conduct UAV surveillance of critical infrastructure in California’s San Joaquin Valley for Chevron, an oil and gas company.

Enabled by Iridium’s global L-Band satellite connectivity, AATI’s AiRanger UAV will conduct remote aerial surveillance of the energy company’s pipeline and production facilities. Iridium’s network offers beyond visual line of sight (BVLOS) connectivity, including remote command and control (C2) and detect and avoid (DAA) capabilities. The UAV will send information via Iridium satellites to conduct routine inspections.

Iridium partner Blue Sky Network customized and integrated its SkyLink 7100 voice, data and BVLOS terminal on the UAVs. The SkyLink 7100 offers continuous tracking and C2 capabilities for aviation and UAV operations.

The AiRanger is the first UAV to comply with industry standards for the DAA system and meet FAA BVLOS operation requirements. This achievement aims to pave the way for broader use of BVLOS UAVs to enhance situational awareness, reduce inspection costs and maximize value.

<p>The post American Aerospace granted FAA waiver for BVLOS operation first appeared on GPS World.</p>

Iridium STL is being deployed by L3Harris to protect critical FAA data center infrastructure. (Photo: Iridium)

Iridium Communications has entered a five-year agreement with L3 Harris. Under the agreement, Iridium will provide its satellite time and location (STL) service to more than three dozen L3Harris-operated communications network backbone nodes and a similar number of Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) facilities throughout the United States.

L3Harris, responsible for operating a private network for the FAA, provides voice, data and video communications for the National Airspace System operations and mission support functions. Given the critical nature of timing synchronization within the L3Harris communications network, particularly for supporting various critical infrastructure applications, the Iridium STL service plays a pivotal role in the overall network timing architecture by eliminating dependencies on GPS as the primary timing source.

The solution for L3Harris includes compact devices provided by Adtran’s Oscilloquartz division, which are designed to receive Iridium STL signals. These devices seamlessly integrate into the network and meet nationwide network timing synchronization requirements.

In April 2024, Iridium acquired Satelles, a secure satellite-based time and location service provider.

<p>The post Iridium partners with L3 Harris for FAA infrastructure protection first appeared on GPS World.</p>

Image: AUVSI XPONENTIAL

AUVSI XPONENTIAL 2024 will be held April 22 to 25  at the San Diego Convention Center in San Diego, California.

The event’s key themes include infrastructure and operations, technical research and development, data and analytics, cybersecurity and policy and regulations. The conference will feature keynotes, educational sessions, specialized workshops, and an XPO Hall with more than 30 exhibit categories with technologies across air, land and maritime sectors.

XPONENTIAL attracts more than 7,500 attendees each year, who attend more than 200 educational sessions as part of the full conference. The current keynote sessions include innovators with diverse perspectives and backgrounds who will speak on pressing topics and address key questions affecting the autonomous community.

Confirmed speakers include:

Doug Beck
Director, Defense Innovation Unit

Operationalizing DIU 3.0
Responsible for accelerating the Department of Defense (DoD) adoption of commercial technology through the military, Beck will discuss how defense agencies and industry can collaborate to strengthen national security. This session will be moderated by Courtney Albon, emerging technology reporter for Defense News and C4ISRNET.

Michael Brasseur
Chief Strategy Officer, Saab Inc.

To Create, To Make, To Shape
Drawing upon his role in implementing Saab’s future capabilities strategy, Brasseur’s presentation will address how individuals and organizations can foster an environment of continuous improvement and advancement.

Hal Brands, Ph.D.
Henry A. Kissinger, professor of global affairs, Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies

Advancing Technologies and Their Role in World Affairs
Using his knowledge in foreign policy, international relations and security strategy, Brands will help leaders conceptualize strategies to safeguard national interests and organizations to navigate geopolitical challenges.

Henrik I. Christensen, Ph.D.
Qualcomm chair of robotics and professor, computer science, director of contextual robotics institute, UC San Diego

Looking Ahead: Robotics and Artificial Intelligence
Henrik will explore the future of these technologies and how stakeholders can form strategies that capitalize on emerging opportunities.

Harry Yeff (aka Reeps One)
AI Artist and AI for Good Activist

Undoing a Narrative of Fear
Yeff, a London-born, neurodivergent artist, will share how we can foster a constructive dialogue on responsibly integrating technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and autonomy. His performance art pieces, integrated with AI and voice technology, have been exhibited internationally and garnered more than 100 million online views worldwide.

Additionally, a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Panel titled “Getting to Go,” will cover safety standards, implementation challenges and obstacles to technology development and testing. Panelists include three representatives from the FAA: Timothy Arel, chief operating officer of the air traffic organization, Marc Nichols, chief counsel and Laurence Wildgoose, assistant administrator for policy, international affairs and environment.

Matt McCardle, head of global regulatory affairs and strategy at Amazon Prime Air will moderate the discussion.

GPS World staff will be attending the conference. To follow our live coverage, click here.

More speakers will be announced in the coming weeks. Click here to learn more and register.

<p>The post XPONENTIAL 2024 is quickly approaching first appeared on GPS World.</p>

Artist impression; size of debris exaggerated as compared to Earth. (Image: ESA)

So much going on up there!

On Jan.11, speaking at a press briefing in Paris, Javier Benedicto, director of navigation for the European Space Agency (ESA), announced the agency had completed the procurement process for the low-Earth Orbit Positioning Navigation and Timing (LEO PNT) program. ESA expects to have the new LEO PNT demonstration satellites, which will broadcast signals over several frequency bands, up and running by 2026. A positive outcome will most likely lead to the procurement and deployment of a full European LEO PNT constellation for global services.

Also in January, news broke that Google and two of the largest mobile network operators in the world, AT&T and Vodafone, had invested more than $200 million in AST SpaceMobile’s cellular broadband network based on LEO satellites and accessible directly by smartphones. AST SpaceMobile already operates the largest-ever commercial communications array in LEO, the BlueWalker 3 satellite, which, due to its size and brightness, is alarming astronomers.

On Feb. 21, The New York Times reported about U.S. warnings to its allies that Russia might deploy a nuclear weapon in orbit this year. According to the paper, U.S. intelligence agencies told their closest European allies that, “if Russia is going to launch a nuclear weapon into orbit, it will probably do so this year — but that it might instead launch a harmless ‘dummy’ warhead into orbit to leave the West guessing about its capabilities.” A space weapon nested inside a satellite could destroy, jam, or otherwise disable dozens or hundreds of commercial and military satellites in LEO, such as the Starlink satellites that are revolutionizing global communications. See Dana Goward’s analysis.

The next day, Tim Crain, chief technology officer of the Houston-based company Intuitive Machines announced, “Houston, Odysseus has found its new home.” For the first time since Apollo 17 in 1972, a U.S.-built spacecraft had landed on the moon. Odysseus, described by the Times as “a bit bigger than a telephone booth,” (which most people under the age of 20 have never seen), was later confirmed to be upright and sending images. It was delivered into lunar orbit by a SpaceX rocket. NASA hopes this mission will help inaugurate a new era of economical spaceflights around the solar system. Intuitive Machines is one of several small companies the agency has hired to transport instruments to reconnoiter the surface of Earth’s only natural satellite in preparation for the return of NASA astronauts.

My highly synthetic description of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) aircraft tracking systems in last month’s First Fix was a bit muddled. Fortunately, I can count on our Editorial Advisory Board member Mitch Narins to clarify:

FAA systems determine an aircraft’s position using a combination of independent and dependent surveillance. Independent surveillance does not require the “cooperation” of the aircraft (e.g., primary radar), while dependent surveillance requires the aircraft to either respond to an interrogation signal or periodically transmit its position — e.g., Automatic Dependent Surveillance-broadcast (ADS-B).

<p>The post First Fix: Very busy space first appeared on GPS World.</p>

Matteo Luccio

Every day, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) monitors and assists more than 45,000 flights — up to 5,000 at any one time — across the more than 29 million square miles that make up the U.S. National Airspace System (NAS). It knows the position of each plane with an accuracy well within its length.

Three key NAS systems are the Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast (ADS-B), the Airport Surveillance Radar (ASR-11), and the Wide Area Augmentation System (WAAS). They are all part of the Next Generation Air Transportation System (NextGen), a large-scale FAA initiative to modernize the NAS.

ADS-B — which includes ground-based radar and navigational aids and GNSS signals — provides real-time precision, shared situational awareness, and advanced applications for both pilots and air traffic controllers. It enables pilots to see on their cockpit displays what controllers see: other aircraft in the sky.
Relying on satellites instead of ground navigational aids also enables aircraft to fly more directly between airports, reducing flight times, fuel consumption, and air pollution. Furthermore, the improved accuracy, integrity and reliability of satellite signals over radar will enable air traffic controllers to safely reduce the minimum separation distance between aircraft, thereby increasing the number of flights.

ASR-11 is an integrated primary and secondary radar system at terminal air traffic control sites. It interfaces with both legacy and digital automation systems and provides greatly improved local weather forecasts that enhance situational awareness for both air traffic controllers and pilots.

WAAS, a form of a satellite-based augmentation system (SBAS), enables the NAS to provide horizontal and vertical navigation for approach operations for all classes of aircraft in all phases of flight, including vertically-guided landing approaches in instrument meteorological conditions at all qualified locations. It may be further enhanced with ground-based augmentation systems (GBAS) in critical areas.

Through NextGen, the FAA has modernized air traffic infrastructure in communications, navigation, surveillance, automation, and information management with the aim of increasing the safety, efficiency, capacity, predictability, flexibility, and resiliency of U.S. aviation. NextGen includes airport infrastructure improvements, new air traffic technologies and procedures, and safety and security enhancements.

Now, contrast all this with the near inability of the Federal Railroad Administration — tasked with enabling the “safe, reliable, and efficient movement of people and goods” by rail across the United States — to track any of the trains that carry 28 percent of the country’s freight, including many hazardous materials, and to know what they contain. In 2023, there were more than 1,000 train derailments in the United States, most of them in railyards. The derailment in East Palestine, Ohio, a year ago, caused more than $800 million in damages and 80 percent of residents experienced health consequences. Only luck has so far prevented massive loss of life due to a derailment in an urban area. True, the FRA’s operating environment, which includes tunnels and multipath, is very different from the FAA’s, as are its regulatory challenges. Still, tracking where trains are and what they carry would be a great start to addressing the threat of toxic spills.

Matteo Luccio | Editor-in-Chief
mluccio@northcoastmedia.net

<p>The post Tracking planes but not trains first appeared on GPS World.</p>