Brenda Marie Rivers
Raytheon has partnered with AirMap, an airspace management platform developer, to combine the latter’s platform with the former’s Standard Terminal Automation Replacement System to help small unmanned aerial system operators comply with airspace regulations.
Raytheon said Wednesday the two firms plan to demonstrate the integrated unmanned aircraft traffic management technology’s capacity to monitor drones near airports, which operate at a maximum of 400 feet and are covered by the STARS platform.
Both entities previously announced plans to collaborate in June in an effort to streamline the Federal Aviation Administration authorization process for operating within the National Airspace System. The AirMap tool will also enable operators to request for authorizations through FAA’s automated Low Altitude Authorization and Notification Capability system.
Kip Spurio, managing director of air traffic systems at Raytheon, said the team envisions autonomous flight as a major form of transportation in the future, with Amazon already launching experiments on using drones to deliver medical paraphernalia.
“With the proliferation of drones, we think that the FAA will need to get more involved so there aren’t conflicts between manned aircraft and drones,†he noted.
AirMap currently services over 250K registered users and has processed over 45K automated authorizations for operating in controlled airspace.
