Unmanned Aircraft Will Test Air Traffic Control

coondoggie writes "While the skies aren't exactly buzzing with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) just yet, experts are warning their explosive growth will require military and public officials to address the issue sooner than they might think. The four chiefs of service aviation and intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) branches told the Army Aviation Association of America's unmanned aircraft symposium last week that the military should crystallize combat air control regarding UAVs, while domestic authorities must work out access and use of UAVs in domestic airspace. "I'm surprised we haven't had a collision yet," said Rear Adm. Joseph Aucoin, director of the Navy's aviation plans and requirements branch."

Comments

It's not just the weight of crew you save

[DFJA]

For cargo planes at least, you can make a lot of savings if you don't have to support human survival on board. For example you don't need to pressurise the cabin (thus saving weight of air), nor provide toilets, sound insulation, heating systems, safety equipment etc.. With a redesign of plane you don't even need to provide standing room - you could fit cargo into a wing shape that didn't have the tube bit in the middle, thus making it more aerodynamic. You wouldn't be limited by how long people can tolerate being on board, so for cargo you could fly a plane say from England to New Zealand non-stop at a much slower speed, thus saving on fuel consumed, thus saving on weight of fuel you need to supply when you take off and so forth. It also becomes more economical to have smaller point-to-point cargo deliveries which don't incur the energy and handling costs of bringing a plane to land at a major hub, sorting the cargo onto an onward flight and shoving it back up in the air again.

Re:Modernization

[(H)elix1]

Really, why is it OK for planes to fly without even having a radio? It's almost 2008, we should have planes with full, digital situational monitors that tell the pilot about any looming threats. If you spend $500,000, you can have that today, but it should be costing somewhere around a couple grand. Since the entry point for aviation is around $20,000 for a basic, 2-seat plane, this is a big deal.

You assume the aircraft has electrical power. I've got a 1962 Stitts that does not have an electrical system. You start it the old fashion way - spin the prop. Cost me ~6.5, with a couple thousand more in maintenance to fly a 100 hp, two seat, tail dragger that has its aerobatics rating. Next time I resurface the wings, I'll probably run wiring for lights. I just cannot afford (weight) an alternator. The extras are nice - but the moment you buy anything 'aviation' grade, you tend to shell out 2-3 times what one would think you might pay. I'd reply back - why are bicyclist allowed to bike on a street without a drivers license? Why aren't all cars all wheel drive? Just like a radio, in some conditions you don't need it. Flying is not so different from boating. Most areas follow some simple rules. You don't take a canoe into a major port...

So anyhow - I don't have my instrument rating, so I fly below 10,000' in good weather - VFR (visual flight rules) airspace. This is my worry about the UAV's - they damn well better keep those things in IFR airspace. They can be hard to spot in the air - much like a glider. You get the wrong angle, and you could be in for a surprise if you are not diligent in scanning the sky. Commercial aircraft are equipped with the transponder, radio, etc. Personal aircraft - not so much. Either way, the pilot is ultimately responsible. An autonomous drone scares the hell out of me. A remotely piloted drone is troubling, as the odds they will look at their cameras for oncoming traffic as intensely as somebody who's life *depends* on it is slim.

(One final note - while I do lust after a glass cockpit, the altimeter and other gages tend to work on air pressure. The old displays might be analog, but digital display or not - it is the same data source that worked in the 50's)