Airbus UpNext, a subsidiary of Airbus Defense and Space (ADS) proclaims a major achievement in tanker aircraft, namely the successful implementation of autonomous guidance and control in drone flight from an Airbis A310 MRTT (Multi-role Tanker Transport) aircraft.
The drone control test from the tanker is certainly not without purpose. Tested as a first step towards Autonomous Formation Flight and Autonomous Air-to-Air refueling (A4R), this technology represents a significant breakthrough for future air operations involving manned and unmanned assets.
This advanced 'Made in Europe' solution reduces crew fatigue and potential human error, while minimizing crew training costs and providing more effective operations.
"The success of this first flight test campaign paves the way for the development of autonomous and unmanned air-to-air refueling technology," said Jean Brice Dumont, Head of Military Air Systems at Airbus Defense and Space.
“Although we are at an early stage, we have achieved this in just one year and are on the right track for future manned and unmanned cooperation and air force operations where fighters and mission aircraft will fly alongside drone swarms. ”
Known as Auto Mate, the technology was integrated on the A310 MRTT flying testbed, which took off from Getafe, Spain, on March 21, 2023, and several DT-25 target drones, acting as receiver aircraft and flying from the Arenosillo Test Center in Huelva, Spain.
Over the waters of the Gulf of Cadiz, drone control switches from the ground station to the Airbus MRTT A310, and the crew from the A310 independently guides the DT-25 to an in-flight refueling position.
During nearly six hours of test flights, four consecutively launched receivers (DT-25) were controlled and commanded sequentially thanks to artificial intelligence and cooperative control algorithms, without human interaction. The different receiving drones are controlled and directed to a minimum distance of 150 feet (approximately 45 meters) from the A310 MRTT.
The Auto'Mate Demonstrator technology was developed by a European team from Spain, Germany, and France. Later this technology will also be reused in major technology projects, such as the Future Combat Air System (FCAS).
A second campaign is expected towards the end of 2023, exploring the use of navigation sensors based on artificial intelligence and enhanced algorithms for autonomous formation flights. In addition, there will also be two simulated drones flying concurrently around the A310 MRTT to demonstrate the autonomous operation of the multiple receivers and the system's collision avoidance algorithm.
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