Aviation International News reports that “multiple projects across Japan, South Korea, China, Singapore, Indonesia, India, Australia, and New Zealand are laying the groundwork for the wider Asia-Pacific region to stand at the forefront of new advanced air mobility (AAM) services.”
Full Story (Aviation International News)
Tag: AAM
NASA, DARPA, Sikorsky Design Air Taxi Software
ExecutiveGov reports that NASA is working with DARPA and Sikorsky “to develop and test autonomous software designed for future self-flying air taxis.” NASA said the research is “led by NASA’s Advanced Air Mobility program, which aims to take transportation to new heights by innovating passenger and freight flights in dense traffic environments and other scenarios.” AAM’s mission is “to ensure a safe, accessible, automated, yet affordable air transport in hard-to-reach urban and rural areas.” The three organizations “are currently designing software using scripted flight paths as well as customized test tablets and ground control room simulations to understand the technology’s behavior and response to air-to-air encounters.” The software will eventually “be installed and tested on Sikorsky’s modified S-76B helicopter, labeled the Autonomy Research Aircraft, and its Optionally Piloted Vehicle Black Hawk helicopter.”
Full Story (ExecutiveGov)
Experts Discuss Challenges, Opportunities Around AAM
Aviation Today reported that a panel of experts hosted by AUVSI and the FAA “discussed the challenges and opportunities associated with cooperating internationally on advanced air mobility, or AAM.” Panel moderator Jessica Orquina, Manager of the Implementation Branch for the FAA’s Safety & Integration Division in the UAS Integration Office, “noted that many of the FAA’s current regulations allow AAM aircraft to meet strict safety standards through innovative means.” Further, she “added that the FAA is working with international partners to adopt common certification and integration standards from other countries as AAM is being defined.” Meanwhile, Pulkit Agrawal, Principal Certification Engineer (UAS/UAM) at Honeywell, “spoke about some of the opportunities in the AAM industry” and how the company “believes in the vision of efficient air transportation – electric air taxis that can complete a 100-mile trip in 45 minutes – as well as same-day package delivery via drone.”
Full Story (Aviation Today)
RAeS Article: Taking Revolutionary Leaps Toward a New Age of Aviation
By Ming Chang, AIAA Aeronautics Domain Lead* and Senior Director of Flight Technologies, General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc (Retired).
Written 17 April 2023
Originally published by Royal Aeronautical Society
The first age of aviation proved that human flight was possible and developed aviation into a safe and viable transportation industry. The second age of aviation started with the development of the jet engine, which enabled higher speeds, improved safety, and paved the way for air travel accessibility for all. The next age of aviation will separate power from propulsion in conjunction with specialised materials and modern avionics and software to enable unique mission-specific aircraft, enhance people’s connectivity, and fully elevate human activity while reducing its environmental footprint.
The widespread use of UAVs and drones –both commercial and recreational – has led the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to adapt its certification processes. Similarly, the FAA must facilitate the safe use of Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) systems for local passenger and cargo transport. As the FAA refreshes its certification strategy, we expect to see clear specifications, regulations, and standards emerge that will strike an appropriate balance between safety and innovation.
Incremental advances in aerodynamics, lightweight structures and materials, manufacturing processes, and air traffic efficiencies will provide only part of the solutions to power aircraft in this next age of aviation. For significant carbon reductions, more efficient aircraft engines and new fuels are needed. The industry will have to shift to more sustainable sources of energy, from sustainable fuels to various forms of electric propulsion to hydrogen.
The transition from oil to new energy sources presents challenges for every facet of aviation systems. The R&D infrastructure in the aeronautics community is ready to meet these challenges through development of sustainable aviation fuels (SAF), hydrogen fuel cells (HFC), hydrogen turbine propulsion (HTP), battery-electric vehicles (BEV), and innovations yet to be discovered. Past R&D investments ensure that battery-electric vehicles deliver improved performance by a few percent annually. HFC systems are likely to be cost competitive with internal combustion in as little as five years. ‘Green’ hydrogen production costs are expected to decline to levels competitive with fossil derived sources. Meanwhile, SAF is available today but needs support for greater production and wider adoption. What will it take? If the community focuses and invests in these products and systems, aeronautics can play a leading role in decarbonisation.
AIAA believes we can achieve decarbonisation in aeronautics by 2050. We see several steps needed:
- More government support for the goal of carbon-free aviation by 2050
- Deploying SAF for current airline fleets, while also addressing fleet recapitalization
- Adopting hydrogen fuel cells and other clean, renewable energy sources
- Focusing on new R&D
- Developing the ‘green’ aviation workforce
- Promoting alternate fuel infrastructure development – SAF and hydrogen hubs – to reduce refinery or transportation costs and increase supply availability
Autonomy is certainly going to be part of this next age of aviation and America’s transportation future. With clear operational guidelines, regulations, and standards for accommodating and incorporating autonomy, we see a thriving integrated urban and regional airspace in the next decade. The benefits of autonomy will enhance safety for everyone and enable capabilities we are only just imagining.
In 10 years, we will see many new aeronautics capabilities introduced, and the next generation will experience flight in ways we are just imagining. AIAA is excited about advancing these opportunities as we shape the new age of aviation.
To join the conversation and learn more, attend the 2023 AIAA AVIATION Forum, 12–16 June 2023, in San Diego. Visit: aiaa.org/aviation for more information.
About the Author
As AIAA’s Aeronautics Domain lead, Ming Chang ensures that the US aeronautics community focuses on integrating ground and air vehicles in new ways, building on the industry advances made since the early 20th century taking us further and faster, possibly commercialising supersonic and hypersonic flight. He is supporting the community’s emphasis on addressing carbon emissions and sustainability with advanced materials and clean energy sources.
2023 AIAA AVIATION Forum: AAM And Autonomy
By AUVSI News
Written 17 April 2023
Originally published by AUVSI
In June, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) will host their annual AIAA AVIATION Forum. AIAA is the world’s largest aerospace professional society, and the 2023 AIAA AVIATION Forum is the only event that covers the entire integrated spectrum of aviation business, research, development, and technology.
AUVSI met with Jeremy Wang, an AAM expert, to learn more about the event’s programming around autonomy. Wang is the co-founder and COO of Ribbit, a venture-backed startup developing autonomous aircraft with the goal of improving e-commerce supply chains. Ribbit is credited with the first fully automated gate-to-gate flight in Canada and will soon be bringing commercial routes online in collaboration with regulators, communities, and customers.
Leaps Toward a New Age of Aviation
Wang explained that 2023 is a critical year to convene for discussions on AAM, noting: “What’s exciting right now is that we’re seeing proof that the technology to support eVTOL and autonomous flights is operationally ready…. We’re at a point where technologies have been initially validated, and now the question is how we integrate this into civilian airspace.”
Wang identified outdated regulations as a key challenge for reaching operationalization of AAM. As he explained, there is agreement that the starting point is flight with experimental permits and testing and the desired endpoint is a clear basis for certification processes – but the path in between is uncertain and challenging. In the early stages, some companies are focusing on autonomy for operations without passengers, such as cargo, aerial surveillance, and other missions in rural areas.
Regarding regulatory frameworks and U.S. aviation leadership, Wang said: “Entrepreneurs will go wherever opportunities take them. In fact, companies are looking to achieve airworthiness approvals in other regions and convert them over to the United States, which indicates there is a lack of good frameworks here.” He suggested that the industry work together to support the expansion of existing bilateral frameworks that can be converted to the United States to avoid duplicative regulatory work.
Wang has reason to be optimistic, adding: “One thing that’s exciting is the talk around Digital Flight Rules (DFR) being championed by NASA.” These rules recognize there are new technologies available for collision avoidance. NASA is soliciting feedback from the aviation industry, including from airports, ATC, and operators.
As he considers where autonomy is headed, Wang praised the industry collaboration taking place via standards communities, including RTCA and ASTM.
He also shared his hope that the small UAS and AAM communities will identify areas for increased collaboration, saying: “There can be a lot of benefit for both sides to take from each other on new standards and operational risk frameworks.”
Learn More at the 2023 AIAA AVIATION Forum
Given recent advancements in autonomous technology and commercial aviation, Wang anticipates that the 2023 AIAA AVIATION Forum, 12–16 June, will be well-timed to provide informed perspectives on where AAM is going in the next 10–20 years.
The event will cover key topics on aviation and aeronautics, with Daily Forum Themes:
- Monday, 12 June: State of the Industry
- Tuesday, 13 June: Decarbonization & Sustainability
- Wednesday, 14 June: Advanced Air Mobility
- Thursday, 15 June: Aircraft Certification
- Friday, 16 June: Hypersonics & Supersonics
Why should AUVSI members attend?
- Over 1,700 technical presentations on the latest innovations spanning 20+ aviation and aeronautics research topics will be delivered.
- Speakers and panelists participating in the sessions are proven business leaders and innovators with their fingers on the pulse of the aviation industry.
- Over 2,000 participants from across the globe are expected, representing hundreds of government, academic, and private institutions.
Register Now for the event in San Diego (and available online).
About Jeremy Wang
Jeremy Wang is the co-founder and COO of Ribbit, a venture-backed startup developing autonomous aircraft with the goal of improving e-commerce supply chains. Ribbit is credited with the first fully automated gate-to-gate flight in Canada and will soon be bringing commercial routes online in collaboration with regulators, communities, and customers. Prior to Ribbit, Jeremy was the CTO of Canada’s top-ranked commercial drone operator where he oversaw the development of special-purpose drones for industrial and defense applications. Jeremy completed a BASc in Engineering Science from the University of Toronto and PhD in Mechanical and Mechatronics Engineering from the University of Waterloo.
AIAA Statement on White House Summit on Advanced Air Mobility
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
August 3, 2022 – Reston, Va. – The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) Executive Director Dan Dumbacher made the following statement:
“On behalf of the 30,000 professional and student members of AIAA, we applaud the Biden Administration for holding the White House Advanced Air Mobility Summit (#WHAAMSummit) today. We were pleased to be part of this important event, joining other key stakeholders from the advanced air mobility (AAM) community.
AAM could embody the single greatest transformation for aviation business, science, and policy – and public perceptions – since the emergence of mainstream commercial aviation in the mid-20th century. With clear operational guidelines, regulations, and standards for accommodating and incorporating autonomy, we see a thriving integrated urban and regional airspace in the next decade. The benefits of autonomy will enhance safety for everyone and enable capabilities we are only just imagining.
The Institute is committed to bringing the aerospace technical community together – including industry executives, researchers, academicians, and government officials – to facilitate the needed technology development and to objectively address business and policy issues in AAM. It’s one of our priority Domain topics and our new AAM Task Force is already working on such matters.
AIAA encourages the executive branch to continue its leadership on AAM, working closely with our elected officials, so we all can realize the potential of this emerging industry sector.”
Media Contact: Rebecca B. Gray, [email protected], 804-397-5270 cell
About AIAA
The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) is the world’s largest aerospace technical society. With nearly 30,000 individual members from 91 countries, and 100 corporate members, AIAA brings together industry, academia, and government to advance engineering and science in aviation, space, and defense. For more information, visit aiaa.org, and follow AIAA on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram.