The Federal Aviation Administration has awarded $12 million for drone research and testing aimed at safely expanding operations in US airspace. Announced on 5 October, the funding comes through its Unmanned Aircraft Systems Broad Agency Announcement programme.
The programme supports companies working with FAA-designated UAS Test Sites. Several projects address coordination between drones and existing aviation.
ANRA Technologies’ work includes connecting drone traffic systems with traditional air-traffic systems at airports and establishing a common drone altitude reference. General Atomics is researching ground systems for avoiding aircraft, while OneRadio is testing passive radar for that purpose.
Other projects include satellite-communications testing for long-range drone flights by Censys Technologies and onboard aircraft-avoidance systems from Skydweller.
For airport and airspace operators, the research highlights practical questions about exchanging traffic information and detecting other aircraft. The announcement concerns funding and research objectives; it does not report completed deployment, proven performance improvements or blanket approval for expanded drone flights.