Inside Unmanned Systems provides actionable business intelligence to decision-makers and influencers operating within the global UAS community. Features include analysis of key technologies, policy/regulatory developments and new product design.
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FAA test sites 26 unmanned systems inside Spring 2014 Nevada With deep roots in military un- manned aircraft systems (uas) Nevada has an expert workforce and, according to industry specialist Thomas Wilczek of the Nevada Governor's Office of Economic Development, more pilots capable of flying unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) than any other state. Nevada has a "huge (Department of Defense) presence," he said, with a large Navy range in the northern part of the state and the Air Force's largest continental range in the south. Nevada's UAS test range does not depend, how- ever, on using the state's military airspace, Wilczek told Inside Unmanned Systems. With vast largely unpopulated areas, Nevada offers many options for conducting tests safely and good weather 320 days a year to help keep research on schedule. Flight data from the tests will go to the Federal Aviation Administration to help develop standards for both the aircraft and their operators as well as assess- ments of how air traffic control procedures will need to evolve when UASs are introduced into the national airspace system. The state's universities have a broad interest in developing all kinds of automated systems and the Silver State was the first to create a license for automated cars. Researchers at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) are working on UAS communication and control as well as sensors and the secure handling of data from unmanned systems, said Wilczek. Researchers at the University of Nevada Reno (UNR) are also looking at data handling issues, he said, though much of their time is spent on devel- oping and improving small UAVs—those weigh- ing 55 lbs or less. They are working on advanced techniques to further reduce the size and weight of these petite aircraft, he said. "Everything is go- ing toward miniaturization." Both schools soon will be getting new facilities aimed at supporting work in unmanned aerial ve- hicles. UNLV has been tasked with creating a Center of Excellence, an incubator designed to help with the commercialization of UAS technology. UNR, in addition to launching a new engineering minor in unmanned technology, is building a research hub called the Nevada Advanced Autonomous Systems Innovation Center in downtown Reno. The University of Nevada is not the state's only institution doing research on UAS applications. The Nevada Governor's Offce of Economic Development is leading the unmanned aircraft system (UAS) test range effort. The team's core comprises three major academic centers plus industrial expertise gained supporting military unmanned aircraft programs. unmanned aircraft standards 1 the team 2 TEST RANGES INclUDE The sparsely populated state has tens of thousands of miles of airspace potentially available for fight testing of which more than 30,000 square miles are secure airspace, managed by the Departments of Defense and Energy. There is civilian airspace around the Reno-Stead Airport and at least three other locations including the Boulder city Airport, plus large expanses across the state where testing might be conducted safely. Potential secure test ranges include creech Air Force Base, Nellis Air Force Base, Fallon Naval Air Station, Nevada National Security Site (NNSS)/Desert Rock Airport (DOE operated) and Hawthorne Army Depot. Photo courtesy of Predator-Wikimedia Commons Photo courtesy of Christopher Morris/Courtesy Desert Research Institute lynn fenstermake (l) of the desert research institute and eric Knight of the university of nevada, las Vegas.