Merlin is continuing flight tests of its certification-ready Cessna Caravan at Quonset State Airport in Rhode Island. The campaign is intended to validate the Merlin Pilot autonomy system, with recent flights confirming functionality including flight guidance and autothrottle.

Testing began in June 2024 with a systems-on integration flight and human safety pilot onboard. The system is being designed to support both civil and military operations, including use on C-130J and KC-135 platforms.

Flight guidance integrates with aircraft systems to manage trajectory and speed across all phases, while autothrottle controls thrust to maintain target airspeed. These elements work together to reduce pilot workload and improve flight efficiency.

Other milestones include FAA approval of Merlin’s remote data concentrator and acceptance by the USAF of the airworthiness plan for KC-135 testing.

Merlin founder and CEO Matt George says: “Kicking off our flight test campaign last year marked our transition from R&D to STC validation and certification. As we continue testing and integrating additional core functionalities of our high-assurance autonomy platform, we're proving our ability to build and deliver a highly assured system capable of operating in real-world operations, including complex military missions. These milestones are an exciting step forward in fulfilling our mission to deliver safe, autonomous flight, beginning with our first phase of safety-critical crew support.”