Tag: engineering

RAeS Article: AI, Autonomy, and Human-Machine Teaming Become Rising Forces of Change in Aviation

By Shawn Weil, Chief Growth Officer, Aptima, and Member, AIAA SciTech Forum Guiding Coalition; and Scott Fouse, Aerospace R&D Domain Lead and AIAA SciTech Forum Executive Producer, AIAA

Originally published in the November issue of RAeS AEROSPACE

Aviation is where artificial intelligence (AI) and human-machine teaming with autonomy has become mainstream, beginning initially as assistance for fighter jets in terrain avoidance in the 1980s. Today we see it in commercial jet operations with automatic co-pilots.

Now it’s time to expand AI-powered machine-learning autonomy systems in aviation. There’s an opportunity to focus on applications training to help guide the human-machine teaming for improving aircraft performance and reducing pilot risk.

Engineers are tweaking the relationship between pilot and AI to address concerns about autonomy in a more complex aviation system. The early models of autonomy in aviation have given way to a much more nuanced and complex view of autonomy, where tradeoffs can be made in different ways for different circumstances.

While that autonomy work is still in its infancy, the development of vehicles with autonomous system operations actually dates back to the 1940s in the automobile industry. A blind automotive engineer invented cruise control, an autonomous system that began the process of a broader, more adaptive autonomous system for automobiles. Today, fully autonomous taxi cabs are roaming the streets of San Francisco, aggregating data and updating machine learning capabilities as they transport fares across the city.

Aviation engineers are taking a cue from the automotive industry and exploring the lessons learned about the process of AI-powered autonomy. How should it be implemented in a plane? How should a pilot interface with it? How can a pilot know and anticipate what the autonomy is actually in control of and what the pilot is responsible for?

To address those questions, engineers have honed their systems interfaces, re-designed workflow, and created other externalized cognition tools built on data collection and aggregation. Ultimately what engineers want to create is an autonomous system where they have both high levels of automation and high levels of control. They want to make autonomy a full-fledged member of the flight team that is in some sense omniscient because it’s receiving information from more sensors than the human partner could.

AI won’t replace people in the cockpit. But it may, in fact, amplify their efforts.

Meanwhile, aviation engineers are trying out new ways of using autonomy. One example the U.S. Air Force (USAF) is exploring is the concept of the automated wingman. Here, a piloted aircraft might be flying with two or three autonomous aircraft around it, anticipating the pilot’s next move. These drones are not just reacting to the pilot’s commands, but they’re reacting to the pilot’s intent. They can anticipate the pilot’s actions. The USAF is currently ramping up plans for using 1,000 autonomous drones to assist jetfighters, calling them collaborative combat aircraft.

Aviation engineers are beginning to understand that perhaps the whole science of human autonomy interaction from a cognitive systems point of view has to be rethought. Training should be created to help the pilots know more than just how to fly the aircraft, but also how to manage, understand, and anticipate the autonomous system.

Now the real work in AI-powered machine-learning autonomy for aviation begins. Learn more during the 2024 AIAA SciTech Forum, 8–12 January, Orlando, Florida. A number of panel discussions and technical papers presented throughout the forum will help the aviation industry move the autonomy and human-machine teaming work forward.

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Space News reports that on October 31, Space Systems Command “announced 21 launch missions have been assigned to United Launch Alliance and SpaceX as part of the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) Phase 2 contract the companies won in 2020. These missions assigned for fiscal year 2024 mark the fifth and final year of the Phase 2 contract. Of the 21 missions, ULA received 11 and SpaceX 10. These missions are projected to launch over the next two to three years.” Col. Chad Melone, senior materiel leader for mission solutions at the Space Systems Command, said, “Under our Phase 2 contract, ULA and SpaceX have been committed partners, and our combined team remains dedicated to delivery of critical assets to our warfighters as we complete this phase of the NSSL program and embark on NSSL Phase 3 starting in FY25.
Full Story (Space News)

JetBlue Predicts Pratt & Whitney Engine Issues to Ground Aircraft through Next Year

FlightGlobal reports that JetBlue Airways “expects six of its Airbus A321neos to be grounded by Pratt & Whitney (P&W) engine problems by year-end – and for that number to rise in 2024.” JetBlue CFO Ursula Hurley said, “We’ll end next year with a high single-digits, low double-digits number of aircraft on the ground.” During its October 31 quarterly earnings call, the carrier “described how it stands to be affected by P&W’s recall of PW1100G geared turbofan (GTF) engines due to disk problems, which has caused broad fleet disruptions among A320 operators.” JetBlue currently “has 25 A321neos in service and four in storage, according to Cirium fleets data.” The majority of GTF engines “on JetBlue’s aircraft were manufactured post-2021, meaning that they were made outside of the production run of engines that currently need inspection.”
Full Story (FlightGlobal)

Embraer Sees Backlogs Rise in Q3

Aviation Week reports that Embraer “delivered 28 executive aircraft and 15 commercial aircraft during the third quarter (Q3) of 2023, up 30% from 33 total aircraft delivered for the period a year ago.” The Brazil-based manufacturer “delivered 19 light jets and nine midsize jets during the quarter, up 22% from a year ago.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)

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Full Story (FlightGlobal – Subscription Publication)

SpaceX’s Starship Faces US Review on Path to Launch Resumption

Bloomberg reports that the US Fish and Wildlife Service “initiated a formal review of the upgrades SpaceX has made to its Starship launch system, one of the final regulatory steps before flights can resume following its explosive April debut.” The agency “said in an emailed statement Thursday that it initiated the review – a consultation under the Endangered Species Act – with the Federal Aviation Administration on Oct. 19.” The FWS now “has as long as 135 days to create an updated biological opinion about how Starship and its launches impact the local environment, however the agency does not ‘expect to take the full amount of time,’ a representative said in the statement.”
Full Story (Bloomberg)

Northrop Grumman Remains on Track to Fly B-21 Raider Before End of 2023

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Full Story (FlightGlobal); More Info (Defense Daily)

USAF Conducting “Ground Taxi Activities” with B-21 Raider Ahead of First Flight

Inside Defense reports the US Air Force said that it is “conducting ‘ground taxi activities’ with the B-21 Raider ahead of the bomber’s first flight.” According to a statement from the USAF, “Rigorous testing is a critical step in the B-21 flight test program. … Extensive testing evaluates systems, components and functionalities. This testing allows us to mitigate risks, optimize design and enhance operational effectiveness.”
Full Story (Inside Defense)

StandardAero Commences CFM56-7B Test Capabilities at Dallas Facility

Aviation Week reports that US maintenance provider StandardAero “has commenced test services for the CFM56-7B engine at its engine hospital shop close to Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport.” Earlier this year, the company “completed test cell correlation for the CFM56-7B, the powerplant for Boeing 737NG aircraft.” StandardAero “holds a CFM International general support license agreement for the engine type, which was added to the MRO’s operations specifications for its FAA Part 145 repair station at the beginning of this year.” Now with test capability, StandardAero “is able to conduct engine performance tests following line maintenance or long-term storage.” It is also “able to undertake exploratory engine runs to investigate potential issues.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)

NASA’s Ingenuity Helicopter Achieves Longest Flight in 18 Months

SPACE reports that NASA’s Ingenuity helicopter “conducted its 63rd Mars flight on Thursday (Oct. 19), covering 1,901 feet (579 meters) of ground in the process.” That was “its longest distance since Flight 25,” NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory said. Ingenuity “flew for 2,310 feet (704 m) on Flight 25, which occurred on April 8, 2022.” This latest sortie “lasted 143 seconds, according to the mission’s flight log.” Ingenuity “got a maximum of 39 feet (12 m) above the ground and reached a top speed of about 14.1 mph (22.7 kph).”
Full Story (SPACE)