Reliable Robotics has achieved firsts for global commercial aviation by completing successful test flights of remote-piloted passenger aircraft in US airspace. In the first flight, the pilot pressed a button on a remote user interface and the unmanned four passenger Cessna 172 Skyhawk automatically taxied, took off, and landed. Most recently, the company has demonstrated fully automated remote landing of an even larger aircraft, the Cessna 208 Caravan, capable of carrying 14 passengers.

“Automated aircraft are going to fundamentally shift the entire airline business, and Reliable Robotics is well positioned to be a key player in this new market. The progress its team has demonstrated in a short amount of time is very impressive,” says David Neeleman, founder of five commercial airlines including JetBlue Airways.

Reliable Robotics integrated its autonomous platform onto the 2,550 pound C172. It began the C172 programme in January 2018 and completed fully automated gate-to-gate operation before the end of that year. Extensive system safety analysis and testing was conducted prior to the unmanned test flight in September 2019. This marked the first time a privately funded company has operated a passenger aircraft of this type with no pilot on board over a populated region, and was an important step in certifying the autonomous platform for repeated, safe civil use on certified aircraft.

“We spent the first portion of our flight test programme focused on the C172. We thoroughly tested every aspect of our system in simulation and conducted rigorous safety checks before operating the aircraft without a pilot on board, and are now proud to share what we've been working on,” comments Robert Rose, co-founder and CEO of Reliable Robotics. “By bringing advanced automation to aviation, we will deliver higher safety, reliability and convenience for cargo operators and eventually for passengers.”

The company has designed and built a proprietary autonomous platform that can be applied to any fixed-wing aircraft. The platform includes avionics, software, mechanisms, a communications system and remote command interfaces, along with a backup system that has the capability to take over if needed. Following the C172 programme, it has been adapted for use on the larger C208. Reliable Robotics is now working with the FAA on incrementally bringing this technology to market, having already demonstrated automated landing on the C208 last month.