Aviation News Item: 00449

13th Aug 2009

Source: ubmaviationnews.com

Rockwell Collins has recently tested the use of auto-land technology originally designed for unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) on a manned single-engine light aircraft. A modified Hawker Beechcraft (HBC) Bonanza conducted a series of hands-off landings during a test campaign at the airframer's headquarters in Wichita, Kansas. The aircraft was equipped with an experimental fly-by-wire flight control architecture including Rockwell Collins' Athena 411 system to provide flight guidance and control cues. "This project with HBC shows what is possible by leveraging our UAS technology to potentially serve as a digital parachute in emergency situations," explained Dr. David Vos, senior director of unmanned aircraft systems and control technologies for Rockwell Collins. More testing is planned for the coming months.

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