NASA’s General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Ikhana UAV will be used for the two-month test campaign, during which 15 flights and 270 encounters of the UAV with manned “intruder” aircraft will be carried out to test the detect and avoid (DAA) systems carried by Ikhana.
Intruder aircraft to fly near the MQ-9 Predator-derived Ikhana during the tests will include NASA’s Beechcraft B200 King Air and T-34C, plus its Gulfstream GIII and Honeywell-owned C90 King Air. Additionally, a US Air Force Beechcraft C-12 King Air will also be used.
“These intruders will function as high-speed and low-speed aircraft to verify and validate the requirements of the minimal operational performance standards for UAS [unmanned air systems],” NASA says.
The testing will be the fourth round – flight-test series 4 (FT4) – under the airspace integration project, and is set to take place from the end of April until June at NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center in California. Partners include General Atomics, Honeywell and the RTCA special committee.
